You Changed Me Somehow
by A'isha Ishtar
Summary: So, Kame has recently lost her job. The only other work she can find is with the Kazekage himself... as his son's babysitter. She's never been a babysitter before, but she'll try anything once... it's just not guaranteed that she'll stick with it. OFFICIALLY OFF HIATUS, BEING UPDATED AGAIN!
1. Chapter 1

Damn. Damn, damn, damn.

Was my mother going to _kill_ me if she heard about this.

Well, I guess I should start at the beginning and explain _why_ my mother was probably going to kill me and _what_ I didn't want to tell her, shouldn't I? Right...

First of all, my name is Kame Chi, and at the point in my life when I felt like my mother was going to kill me if I told her something (well, I felt like that _several_ times, but this time), I was sixteen years old. I have dusty brown hair, and blue-ish black-ish eyes (very descriptive, I know), and I'm kinda... well, I'm not as... I guess you could call me... OKAY, FINE. I'm vertically challenged. I'm a shrimp. _I'm short._ Shut the fudge up about it already. I know I coulda passed for a twelve-year-old.

So, what was the big thing that I thought my mother would kill me if she heard about?

I just lost my job.

You may not think it's such a big deal, but in the metropolis of Sunagakure, where most job positions have already been filled, you were incredibly lucky to get one, especially if you were young. Suna was a slow-moving town usually, unlike the hustle and bustle of big villages like Konoha. We had few tourists other than the shinobi that came here on missions, and most of our customers were our own citizens. That meant jobs weren't easily created because they weren't needed. There wasn't really a lot of supply and demand at work here. Following me so far?

Also, I was already in trouble with the employment situation. I probably wouldn't have been so afraid to go crawling back to my mom to tell her this... if it hadn't been for the fact that the job I had just lost was my third one in a month.

Actually, I didn't _just_ lose it. I had quit.

I had quit working at Suna's ice cream parlor because of several things. One, I was tired of having my disgusting coworkers make passes at me. It was really nauseating to endure and probably qualified as sexual harassment. Two, I was sick of my boss having time for her boyfriend but no time for me when I wanted to either report my coworkers or ask if I could get an increase in wage, even if it was just like fifty cents or something. Three, I refused to wear that hideous, gaudily colored _lace_ uniform any longer. It was too bright; I preferred black and blue... like, how somebody's skin would look if they decided to pick a fight with me. Shinobi, I wasn't. Pissy and constantly PMS-ing, I was.

My exact words as I stormed out of the building were, "Fuck off, I don't need to be treated like this!" as I tossed my apron down into the dirt.

So here I was now, standing in front of the Kazekage's office. I had an appointment with him about my unemployment, because I really didn't want to go begging to my mom. I had been kicked out a few months ago, and sure as hell I didn't want to go back. If I went back, then it would tell her I couldn't take care of myself. I had wanted out in the first place, and I didn't want her to think that it was a bad decision. It probably was, but I didn't want her to think I couldn't handle myself.

I took a deep breath; I entered the building, stated my name to the secretary, and then sat down to patiently wait my turn like a big girl.

At last, I was permitted to enter the office. The woman opened the door for me, and after I walked in, she shut it, the noise sounding invariably like... oh... _my doom_.

"Have a seat, Miss Chi."

_Miss_. Well, at least I was kind of being referred to as an adult. But the look on the Shidaime's face clearly told me he had more important things to deal with than a broke teenager so I had better do some serious sucking up. I sat down, taking another breath. Time to kiss some tushy. "Good afternoon, Kazekage-sama. How was your lunch?"

"Spare me the pleasantries, please." He folded his hands on his desk. That was something I did like about him - he didn't do paperwork if he was talking to you, despite that he was swamped with it. "Now, what do you need? As you can see, I am a busy man. Please do not make me feel that I'm wasting my time by speaking with you."

"... Right." Okay, so sucking up didn't work. Maybe the direct approach would be better with him anyway. "Well, sir, I recently found myself in, uh... new living arrangements..."

"Parents kicked you out?"

... Fuck. Was I really that easy to read? "Yes, sir."

"Kids today," he muttered under his breath, but I could still hear him. "But continue."

"So, as you can imagine, I've been trying to earn enough income to rent an apartment and survive on my own. But somehow I've managed to lose three jobs over the course of almost four weeks. So... I'm in desperate need of work and thought as the leader of our village you might be able to help."

"I see. May I ask how your employment at these jobs came to be terminated?"

"It involved me quitting because of overly obnoxious colleagues, bosses who just hated me, ugly uniforms, or a combination of all three."

"And where have you been living for the past month, Miss Chi?"

"With my aunt, but she's getting real sick of it."

"I may have something for you... _may_. First I need to ask a few questions."

"Shoot."

"How old are you?"

"I'll be seventeen in about six months."

"You could pass for twenty. Are you a shinobi?"

"No, sir."

"Have you ever been convicted of a felony? Or found guilty of domestic violence?"

"That'd make for an interesting backstory, but no."

"Are you natively from Sunagakure?"

"Born and raised."

"Alright, now... are you good with children?"

I blinked a few times. Why would he ask me something like that? "Um... I wouldn't know, sir."

"Ever babysit?"

"Never in my life."

He blew out a breath, then sat back. "Miss Chi, it's not often that I take pity on someone, so I suggest you be grateful."

I brightened, giving him a grin. "Oh, thank you! Of course I'm grateful! I won't let you down, Kazekage-sama!"

"Yeah, you're just lucky I'm desperate." He handed me a photograph. It was a young kid about preschool-age, maybe a little bit older. "This is my son, Gaara."

I raised an eyebrow, suddenly not liking the direction this was going. "Yeah,

and...?"

"_And_ from now on, you will be his caretaker. Your hours will be from two in the afternoon until eight in the morning. My brother-in-law, Yashamaru, has been his primary caretaker, but he recently had to take up the afternoon shift and can no longer meet these hours. You are to pick Gaara up from kindergarten at two, and Yashamaru will arrive in the morning to drop him off at eight. And then the house is yourd, so long as you help maintain it. I suggest you hurry to the school, because it's one-fifty right now. Gaara will show you the way to Yashamaru's."

I tucked the picture away in my pocket, and nodded. "Yes, sir. I appreciate it."

I walked out of the office and out of the building altogether, feeling no better than when I'd walked in. What the hell had I just gotten myself into?


	2. Chapter 2

As per the Shidaime's request, I walked over to Sunagakure's elementary school. The civilian children and the shinobi-in-training all attended here together. How would I know? Well, knuckleheads, I was a kid once too. I had to go to kindergarten like everyone else, no matter _how_ much I didn't want to. I had a few friends that were in the ninja world now, but for the most part I ran with the other civilians. "The normal people", my mother called us. Like ninja were freaks or something? My mother was full of stupid prejudices like that, so I'd basically just learned to ignore it when she said anything about people who were different than we were.

I stood out on the steps with some of the other parents or siblings. I just looked at the picture of the little redhead I'd been given, waiting for the bell to ring so I could go pick up "my" kid. He _was_ kind of cute, I'd admit it; but I'd never worked with children before. What if I just failed epically? I'd be begging my mom for a place to stay, that's what.

After what seemed like an eternity to me (I have a short attention span to match my height, okay?), the bell went off. Moms, dads, big brothers, and older sisters began filing into the school. I followed at the tail end of the crowd, hands in my pockets and trying to look like I knew what I was doing when I really had no clue.

Once I got inside, it was easy to spot my new charge. His fire-engine-red hair was hard to miss. He was sitting over in the library section of the classroom, reading a picture book (or attempting to read a real book, but hell if I knew which). What surprised me were the dark rings around his eyes; did he not sleep at all or something? He had this sour expression on his face, a little pout, like he'd had the worst day of his life.

I walked over and knelt down beside him. "Hey Gaara," I greeted, lightly shaking his shoulder. "Time to head home."

He looked up at me, then looked right back down. "I'm not s'posed to talk to strangers."

I sighed. So he was going to be one of _those_ kids. "Well then, let me introduce myself. My name's Kame Chi, and I'm your new nanny."

Calmly he turned another page. "You're too young to be a nanny."

"I'm your babysitter, then."

"Babysitters are mean."

Frustrated, I grabbed the book out of his hands and placed it on a shelf. I took his hand and pulled him up. "Call me whatever you want, Gaara, but it's my job to look after you now."

"Can I call you creepy?" Though I didn't welcome that comment, I was a little happy; I thought he'd fight and scream, but he just started walking with me. Progress, I supposed.

"I'd prefer it if you didn't," I answered cheerfully, guiding him out of the school once he'd gotten his bookbag from the coatroom. "Now, I didn't have time to get directions to where your house is, so you're going to have to show me the way, is that okay with you?"

"Okay." He took the lead, dragging my hand behind in his like a ragdoll. "I wanna show you _all_ my toys when we get home, okay?"

"That's fine."

"And will you play Anbu and Missing-nin with me?"

"Um, maybe..."

"And I want dango for dinner!"

"I don't _know_ what I'm going to make for dinner! For God's sake, please don't ask so many questions." I groaned, already feeling a headache forming in the back of my brain. This kid was going to be a handful, I could tell.

He pouted beside me. "Sorry... but _can_ we have dango for dinner? Without the syrup though?"

"I don't know, maybe." I took a deep breath in, gently easing my wrist from Gaara's grip and walking alongside him. He knew the way, so he didn't have to drag me. He needed to get it through his head that I wasn't going to just walk off. This was pretty easy so far, as long as I could keep his questions either at bay or satisfied. What else did you talk to kids about? "So... what did you do at school today?"

"We drew."

"What did you draw?"

"I have it in here."

"In your bookbag?"

"Yeah. I'll show you when we get home 'cause it's on my back right now."

"Okay." As we walked I found myself sort of swinging my arm, and he seemed to like that, because he swung his arm right back with me.

"So is this just what you do?" he asked, blinking up at me. "You babysit kids for your job?"

"Well, I used to work at another place. But I quit."

"Why did you quit?"

"Because the uniform they made me wear was ugly and I was sick of it," I answered cheerfully, reaching down with my other hand to tousle his hair.

"Oh. Was it a really ugly color? Was it, like, brown or something?"

"Nah, it was white and pink. But it had a lot of lace and ruffles and it was just too fruity and girly for me."

"Oh. So are you gonna babysit me for the rest of your life?"

"Hell no. By the time you're twelve you won't need a babysitter. Besides, I dunno if I'm gonna still be here when you're seven. You might have a different babysitter. I just need a job, and if I find a better one I have to leave."

"But..." His hand tightened in mine, and he pulled my hand/arm over closer to him. "You _can't_ leave, Kame-chan!"

"How come?"

Instantly that question seemed to put him back in a bad mood. "Just 'cause. Whatever, leave if you want. I don't care. I don't like you anyway."

I rolled my eyes. Bipolar much? Well, that was kids anyway, I knew. One minute they could love you, and the second you did something they didn't like they hated you. I shrugged. "Maybe I will. I can't guarantee that I'm going to like this any more than your previous babysitters."

He glared up at me. "You use big words."

"Hey, compared to the average person... yeah, I'm pretty much average. Maybe a little above, I dunno. How 'bout you? Ya know how smart you are, hon?"

He crossed his arms, letting go of my hand. "Dunno."

I sighed. Maybe this would be a little harder than I'd thought. "Sooo... did you play with your friends today, Gaara?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"'Cause."

Great. So the kid was just going to give me monosyllabic answers whenever I asked him a question now. That was charming. "Hmm. So then... read any good books or anything, Gaara?"

"No."

I pointed at a random building, hoping to get a laugh out of him. "Is this our house?"

"Yep." Well, that obviously backfired.

I tell you, I could have _smacked_ myself. With a shovel.

He strode into the house and let his bookbag fall to the floor. He then positioned himself on the carpet, clicked the TV on, and began to watch some anime or something.

I walked over to him, grabbed him under the arms, and dragged him backward. "Don't sit so close. You're going to ruin your eyes. You don't wanna be going to the eye doctor, do you? That places scares me so I sure as hell won't be the one taking you if your eyes end up hurting."

He glared at me, then scooted himself back up toward the TV, practically pressing his face against the screen.

I pinched the bridge of my nose and shook my head. This definitely was _NOT_ going to be an easy job. "Gaara, please move away from the TV. I don't want you needing to get glasses. For one thing, I'd probably get blamed for it. For another..." I let myself giggle. "You really wouldn't look good in glasses, hon."

He glared at me once again, but this time he actually did move away. "Go make dinner."

"Gaara, it's three o'clock. I'm not making dinner at three o'clock."

"You're mean."

"And you're spoiled. I might make you a snack if you ask real nice."

He just scoffed and turned back to his show. "Never mind."

I rolled my eyes and headed to the kitchen anyway, to rearrange things. If the only other person who lived here was Gaara's _uncle_, things would most likely be a mess.

Before I even got to the kitchen, I remembered something. Gaara hadn't shown me what he'd drawn at school. I turned and headed back into the living room. "Gaara! Will you show me what you drew today?"

He looked back at me, glared for a second, then looked back at the TV. "It's in my backpack."

"Okay." I picked up his backpack and unzipped the back part. Inside I found several papers. A few of them were worksheets, with perfectly formed letters, both printed and in cursive. Though, I can't say the cursive was _totally_ perfect, but it was better than I would've done at his age. The other papers were... a newsletter and... ah! The drawings.

One was a bunch of flowers and grass and a big sun in the upper corner. Nice and average-looking for a six-year-old. The other drawing was a little stick figure with bright red hair, crying; it looked like _him_. I honestly couldn't say that wasn't disturbing - and that's coming from _me_. I was the girl who, when I was six, bit the heads off other kids' dolls as revenge for them being mean to me, calling me fat or ugly, or saying I was a booger. No, I didn't tell the teacher; I just destroyed their toys. And _this_ drawing bothered _me_; that was not a good thing.

Worse, there was an arrow pointing to the stick figure. At the end of the arrow was written "Me".

I didn't make any comment about that one. I just slid it back into his bookbag. "Oh Gaara! This picture of these flowers is just so beautiful. I _love_ it. I'm going to put it up on the fridge."

"How come?" he asked, as I began walking back to the kitchen.

"Because! If it's on the fridge, then _everyone_ will get to see how pretty it is."

"You think it's that good?"

"Of course. Who told you it wasn't?"

"Nobody. I just don't think it's that good."

"Well, _I_ do. So it's going up on the fridge. End of discussion, babe, let your artwork shine!"

I heard him kind of growl/sigh at me, but he didn't make any further comments.

* * *

I was right; the kitchen was an absolute _disaster_. It was so clear that no girls lived here, and the mess in the sink made me cringe - and gag. Did I mention how cringing and gagging at the same time is hard and not at all fun?

I was in the middle of trying to rearrange the cabinets. There was cereal on a shelf that was marked "MEASURING CUPS" and there was an empty Tupperware thing where "SNACKS" were supposed to go. I had tied my hair back, even though that style looked unattractive on me, so that my long locks weren't constantly in my face while I was trying to work. I had also grabbed a chair to stand on - because, as I've stated several more times, I'm a shortie. Coupled with my weight, I didn't want to lose my balance trying to jump and reach things or stand on my tiptoes - hey, graceful I'm not.

So I was standing on a chair, organizing what was _really_ the snack cabinet. I'd taken my shoes off, since the floor of this house was cooler than walking around in sandals, even if they were open-toed. I'd nearly forgotten the feeling of cold ground under my feet, living in the blazing desert, but now I felt it and let me tell you: one of the best feelings ever. Next time it's hot out and your feet are sweating, take off your socks and shoes, put your feet on a piece of stone that's never seen the sun, and you'll get what I mean. Or just stick your tootsies on the wall of a freezer. Either way pretty much gets my point across.

This was what I was doing when Gaara came into the kitchen. I stood on the chair, arranging the snacks in the best categories I could come up with. I planned on doing the fridge and freezer next, just so I could have an excuse to stick my head into some cold air.

"Kame-chan!"

"Holy shit!" I kid you not; I fell right off that chair. I lost what little balance I possessed, and knocked the chair over. The box of granola bars I'd been about to place next to the fruit roll-up things flew out of my hand, heading God-knows-where. I managed to somewhat catch myself, but I still hit my head off the cabinet that was under the counter. As if that wasn't enough head trauma for the day, one of the damn granola bars had fallen out of the box and whacked me smack on the top of my skull; the rest of them were littered on the floor around us.

Rubbing my head, I looked up at Gaara. "Okay. Before I yell at you, would you please come behind here, look at my injured noodle, and tell me if there's any blood? You know, so I know whether we're making a trip to the emergency room or not."

Looking very, _very_ sorry, he hurried behind me. I could feel his little hand on my head, separating my hair so he could look. "Um... I don't see any. It's supposed to be red, right?"

"Uh, yeah."

"Okay. All I see is brown."

"And that of course is my hair." I stood up, feeling my back make a noise that probably meant I'd be in pain tomorrow, and blew some of my bangs out of my face. "Okay, now... _what the hell_ is it? I was busy with..." I looked up at the half-straightened-up cabinet, and pointed at it. "_That_ situation."

He ran over to the stove and jumped up to look. "Dinner's not ready!"

"Um, yeah. I haven't started it yet."

"Well, what have you been doing?"

"Fixing this place so I know where everything is!" I righted the chair I'd knocked over and took down the garishly yellow box of cereal. From the next shelf over I got down a bowl and set it on the table. "It's fine, it can be a breakfast-for-dinner night. Let's have some Cheerios."

"No!" Gaara smacked the bowl to the ground, and I was thankful that it was a plastic bowl because otherwise I was sure I'd be paying for it. Just when I thought we'd been getting along, he kicked it up a notch... "I said I wanted dango! I told you that earlier and you said that was fine!"

"I said 'maybe', Gaara! 'Maybe' doesn't mean 'yes'! Didn't your mother ever teach you that?"

"Don't talk about my mommy!" He grabbed the box of cereal from me and threw it on the floor too, and I was glad it wasn't open. "Just make dinner!"

"I said we're having Cheerios!" I knelt down to his height (which wasn't really a long way for me) and stared right into his eyes. "Now pick up the bowl and the cereal so I can fix it for you."

"Cheerios isn't dinner. It's breakfast. Make me _dinner_."

"And stop telling me what to do. I'm not your _slave_, Gaara, and I'm not your maid either. I chose to do this and take care of you, and I can just as soon choose to quit if you keep bossing me around and pissing me off!"

He looked right back at me for a minute. In his sky blue eyes, I saw a few things. There was an intense dislike, for one. For another, there was frustration... sorrow. And then there was something I couldn't identify. A need or want for love or something... maybe?

He did this for about five seconds, then he let out a screech, shoved me back so I fell, and ran out of the room wailing, into what I had earlier discovered as the bathroom.

I quickly stood up and went after him to drag his ass back here and eat his breakfast for dinner. I got halfway there when I heard a click from the door.

Fuck. The kid I was supposed to be babysitting had just locked himself in the bathroom.

This night was just going _peachy_.

**OKAY. Sorry for the long wait, but look! *points* Extra long chapter to make up for it! :D Next one might be a little short thought, since I've got it planned out and they don't say much. But there will be more like introspection and feelings, and possibly from Gaara... hey! Idea! Maybe it won't be as short as I thought it'd be.**

**Hope you liked! If you read, please review because those are SUPER AWESOMELY APPRECIATED! ^^**


	3. Chapter 3

When I heard the lock of the door click, I smacked my forehead and kicked at the carpet. I blew out a breath and turned back to the kitchen to pick up the mess. Maybe if I gave him a minute or two, he'd come around and get out of that damn bathroom. Who throws a tantrum and runs into the _bathroom_, of all places? Why not just go to your bedroom?

I placed the plastic bowl and box of Cheerios on the counter and then leaned against it myself, letting out a deep sigh. I rubbed my forehead and decided maybe this wasn't going to work out. If the kid was just going to throw fits all the time and just push me away from him... well, I didn't know how much more of that kind of attitude I could take. I'd already had to put up with my mother's diva crises, my aunt's utter disappointment at my lack of potential, the Kazekage's hiring me out of pure desperation even though I wasn't qualified, not to mention my previous bosses and coworkers...

I mean, seriously. Was I really that bad that everyone had to treat me like that? Like I was expected to solve everyone's problems and ignore my own, and then I was scolded when I couldn't keep up with it? Expected to do everything the way everyone else wanted it? Sometimes I let myself think, and when I thought, I just ended up going deeper. Sending my thoughts to everyone I'd ever let down, I'd think, _I'm sorry I can't be perfect._

After a moment or two of my introspection, I turned back to the problem at hand: Gaara. I stood straight up and walked over to the bathroom. I took a breath and gave a few sharp raps to the door, trying to be as gentle as I could so I wouldn't make him angrier. "Gaara!" I called, hoping that I sounded more confident than I felt. "Please come out. I'm sorry I yelled at you."

"No!" I could just picture him sitting there on the toilet, legs crossed over each other, arms folded over his chest, and lips set into a pout.

I groaned and began banging on the door. "Okay! I tried being nice, but now my patience has run _completely_ out! You get your ass out of that bathroom and into a chair to eat! You're really pissing me off! If I get any more pissed off I'm spanking you, I don't care what your dad or uncle says about corporeal punishment or whatever that shit is! You piss me off, you're getting spanked!"

"It won't hurt!"

What the hell was that supposed to mean? Even _I_ would scream if someone spanked me... even now when I was sixteen. I mean, if someone did it hard enough. And if someone was going to spank you, they were already ticked off enough to do it, so of course they'd do it as hard as they could. "Get out here!"

"I don't wanna!"

I growled and took my knee to the door. Instantly regretting it, I rubbed my throbbing knee and bit my lip. I grabbed my shoe from the kitchen instead, and tossed it at the door. "You can't spend your whole life in there, Gaara!"

"Can so!"

"Well, you're not going to need what's in _there_ if you don't get out _here_ and eat something!"

"Go away! You're mean! I can't believe you'd say all that mean stuff to me! Just go away!"

Sick of everything, I grabbed my other shoe and hurled it at the door as well. "Fine then! Stay in there and don't come out! Screw it all, just screw it! I don't fucking care! I just don't anymore! I've tried but I guess I just suck so _stay_ in there because I don't like you either!"

I banged my back against the wall and slid down onto the floor, my eyes filling with tears. I let myself cry, sure that Gaara wouldn't care. Why should he? It wasn't as if he liked me or anything, so why would he care that he'd hurt my feelings?

It wasn't even really him so much as it was just the entire situation. The reality and harshness of the world bore down on me, heavy and thick like a never-ending blanket someone had thrown on top of me and I couldn't get out from underneath. I found all the failures I had suffered in my life coming back to me and flooding my mind.

I was such an awful, poor excuse for a child that my father had left when I was three. And because I didn't hold the same beliefs or values as my mother, because I was so different from her and reminded her of "that man", I couldn't make her proud or even content. Whatever I did, she'd find some flaw in it and it was never good enough. I'd quit school last year because all it did was make me feel stupid. Soon after that my mom kicked me out, dumping me on my aunt. I had rejected three jobs, because...

More sobs tore from my chest as I realized why I had quit all those jobs. I was no good at any of them anyway, and besides... those jobs scared me so much. They were showing me how the world really was, what people really acted like, all the cruelty and injustice that would never just go away. And I was terrified of that. What had I been thinking, dropping out of school at fifteen? I wasn't ready for the real world! I wasn't ready to face all the prejudice and distrust and bad intentions out there. All the assholes and bitches, just waiting to get a swing at me or break my heart or hurt someone who didn't deserve it. I'd never been prepared for that.

And now, I was failing at the one thing that was my last hope. I was no good at this babysitting thing either. I couldn't keep Gaara happy or even under control, and I couldn't do everything he wanted me to do. I wasn't going to be able to keep the housework up, and I was sure I wasn't ready to meet Yashamaru. But if I couldn't do this, what was going to happen? To me _and_ to Gaara? I would get kicked out of my aunt's and wind up in some mental home after living on the streets; Gaara would go on being a difficult kid and thinking nobody cared what he wanted.

The next thing I knew, I heard the door to the bathroom opening and then there was a high-pitched, raspy crying beside my ear. Like a kid trying to hold in their sobs. I looked up and saw Gaara. He was there, beside me, tears running down his face. His little fists were curled up, rubbing at his eyes and trying to wipe the tears away. His nose was running a little, and he was sniffling, and it just looked like the saddest thing.

I let out a sigh, and ran my arm across my eyes. I then reached over and tugged on a strand of his red hair. "And why the hell are _you_ crying? Huh, why? _I'm_ the one who screws everything up and wrecks whatever she touches. I'm the one who can't even handle taking care of a six-year-old."

He sat down next to me on the floor, and a few breaths caught in his throat before he spoke. "I-I'm crying 'cause n-now... now you're gonna ask my dad if you can quit. And then if you quit, I won't have _a-anyone_ who likes me. You're the only one of my babysitters who's ever st-stayed this long. And the others just leave me alone, they don't even try to talk to me or anything 'cause they hate me." He pressed both hands to his closed eyes, rubbing furiously and trying to make the tears go away. "I-I'm sorry I made you not like me. I didn't wanna be so mean to you, but... I just thought you'd be like all the others. But then you stayed longer so I just... I... I dunno." He kept crying, wiping the tears off his face as more new ones came down.

I bit my lip at the edge as I thought about everything that had happened between us so far. If he thought I'd be like all his other babysitters, and then he was surprised when I wasn't... he'd been confused, so maybe he'd been unconsciously trying to drive me away. So then he wouldn't have to believe that anyone was different and actually liked him.

I scooted over and pulled him into my lap. "Come here, Gaara. It's not your fault. Stop crying." I held his hands in mine, resting my forehead on his and feeling our hair getting entwined. "I just thought... I mean, I don't know what I want to do with my life. I thought I'd be able to do this and when it didn't look like I could... well... I guess I was just trying harder than I should have. I'm sorry if that made it seem like I didn't like you. You're not that bad, and that's coming from someone who doesn't even like kids that much. I'm just... I wasn't sure if I could do this or not."

I felt Gaara shrug. "Yashamaru says that... he doesn't think a lot of people know what they want to be. He says he doesn't think anybody comes into the world knowing. He says we have to find it ourselves."

"He's smart. Come here, you." I drew my face away and pulled him close to me, holding him against my collarbone and tenderly rubbing his back. I hummed to him for a minute, then began to softly sing the only remotely comforting song I knew, at a slower pace than it was supposed to be but oh well.

"_I'm broke but I'm happy_

_I'm poor but I'm kind_

_I'm short but I'm healthy_

_Yeah_

_I'm high but I'm grounded_

_I'm sane but I'm overwhelmed_

_I'm lost but I'm hopeful_

_Baby_

_And what it all comes down to_

_Is that everything's gonna be_

_Fine, fine, fine_

_'Cause I've got one hand in my pocket_

_And the other one is givin' a high five_

_I feel drunk but I'm sober_

_I'm young and I'm underpaid_

_I'm tired but I'm workin'_

_Yeah_

_I care but I'm restless_

_I'm here but I'm really gone_

_I'm wrong and I'm sorry_

_Baby_

_And what it all comes down to_

_Is that everything's gonna be_

_Quite alright_

_'Cause I've got one hand in my pocket_

_And the other one is flickin' a cigarette_

_And what it all comes down to_

_Is that I haven't got it all_

_Figured out just get_

_'Cause I've got one hand in my pocket_

_And the other one is givin' the peace sign_..."

I let him go and with my thumb I wiped his tears away, looking back into his eyes. This time I didn't see anger; I only saw the sadness.

"Well, c'mon then." I got up, and took Gaara with me, holding him with his cheek resting on my shoulder. I began walking back into the kitchen, playing with his hair. "Dango place is only open for another hour, and Lord knows I'm paying."

I felt his little fingers clinging to me, clutching the spaghetti strap of my tank top and his short nails scraping my skin. "We don't really hafta have dango, Kame-chan. Let's just have Cheerios, kay?"

**Song is Hand in My Pocket by Alanis Morissette. Kame's not a very good singer, but it seems like she's getting better at babysitting! ;P**

**Hope you liked! ^^**


	4. Chapter 4

After dinner came the _really_ fun part of the night. Am I using sarcasm when I say this? Oh hell yes. Let me tell you what happened, kay?

So after Gaara and I had eaten our heart-healthy breakfast of Cheerios, some music started to play on the TV. Some really ninja-like music... like secret agent stuff. Pushing away from the table, Gaara yelled, "_Hitori-kun_ is on! _Hitori-kun_ is on!" And then he ran into the living room, leaving me with a messy kitchen.

I proceeded to put two fingers in my mouth and whistle loudly. "Gaara! You get back in here right now, young man!"

Now, there may be some of you out there who are staring at this page and going, "Huh?" Normal reaction. I mean, after the heartfelt moment I'd just had with the kid, why would I be yelling at him? Well, different kids need different kinds of love. Some need gentle love, some need tough love, and some need crazy (ot weird or nonconformist) love. And since it appeared Gaara was used to doing _what_ he wanted _when_ he wanted to do it, and not doing anything other people wanted him to do, he was going to be a tough love patient.

Gaara came scampering back in, and hung his head. "Yes, Kame-chan? Did I forget to do something?"

I pointed at the sink. "I may _wash_ the dishes, but I can't wash them if you don't put them in the sink, hon."

"Oh! Sorry, Kame-chan." He stood on his tiptoes and grabbed his bowl and glass. "Yashamaru keeps telling me about that. I always forget."

"That's why I'm here." I punched my fist against my palm. "You don't listen, I drill it into your head by way of a noogie!"

"Noooo!" He shook his head, but he was grinning. "If you give me a bunch of noogies then my brain'll turn into mush!"

I flicked him on the forehead, and was surprised when all that met my nail was sand. Weird. "Yeah yeah, you just listen to me or else."

"Or else what?"

"Hmm... I'll take you home with me."

He put his glass inside his bowl, and then rushed over to hug my legs, rubbing his head against my stomach. "No way! I wouldn't mind that."

"D'aww. Now put your stuff up."

"Kay." He walked over to the counter, but his hands didn't quite reach over it. He could get it if he jumped, but it looked like he didn't want to risk dropping the glass.

I sighed and shook my head, feeling a smile tugging at my lips. What a cutie. Walking over, I took him by the waist and lifted him up. "There we go, babe."

"Thanks, Kame-chan!" He dumped his dishes and when I put him down he ran back into the living room. "_Hitori-kun_!"

"And you use your walking feet or you won't have feet at all!" I shouted after him.

"Sorry!"

I let out a breath and looked at the sink. Well, it wasn't too bad. Probably some things from breakfast, and then what we'd had. Wouldn't be too hard for me to wash, I guess.

Midway through my washing, I was struck with the thought that I would be actually living here now. I should call my aunt and tell her to bring my stuff over here... eh, I'd do it later.

Then more gravity came down on me. I was the only person responsible for a six-year-old child from 2:00 in the afternoon until 8:00 in the morning when Yashamaru got back. That was _eighteen hours_. How would I ever survive with this kid? Well, hopefully it wouldn't be too hard getting him to bed. I'd just have to wait till he got tired and then carry him to his room. My aunt told me my mother used to do that when I was younger; wait till I fell asleep and then take me to my room. Funny I didn't remember that... I think my aunt was just making excuses for my mom.

"Hey Gaara," I called, pulling my arms out of the soapy water. "Can you bring me the paper towels? I don't wanna drip all over the floor."

"Coming!" He came into the kitchen and grabbed the paper towels from the table. He took the liberty of tearing a bunch off before handing them to me. "There."

"Thanks, babe." I dried off my hands and, after I'd thrown the towels away, I spread out my arms and yawned - probably the fakest yawn I'd ever made in my life, but oh well. "Man, I'm beat! How about you, Gaara? Are you tired yet?"

He got an apple from the bag near the refrigerator, and took a bite out of it before pointing to the clock on the stove. "It's only six-thirty."

"Oh. Well, what time does Yashamaru usually put you to bed?"

He shrugged, walking back into the living room. "I don't have a bedtime."

I followed him, not bothering to put the dishes away. "So you just go to sleep whenever you want?" I asked, sitting down on the carpet beside him.

"Nope." He took another bite of his apple, and didn't even swallow it before he took _another_ bite.

"Hey, hey." I reached over and lowered his hands. "First of all, chew and swallow what you've got in your mouth before you eat anymore. You don't just keep taking bites, you gotta swallow it. You wanna get something stuck in your throat? 'Cause I keep putting off that Heimlich maneuver class and I'm not sure how safe you'd be if you started choking."

"Sorry, Kame-chan," he apologized, but since his mouth was full it came out more like, "Sowwy, Tame-shan."

I shook my head. "And second of all... you're confusing the _hell_ out of me. If you don't have a bedtime but you don't go to sleep whenever you want... ow, ow, ow! You made my brain hurt!" I fell back in what I hoped was a comical manner, kicking my legs in the air.

Gaara giggled and crawled over to me. "You're weird, Kame-chan, but I think that's what I like about you."

"I still don't get it, man!" I sat up and grabbed him around the waist, dragging him into my lap where I proceeded to give him the noogie-ing of a lifetime. "You confuse me. If you don't have a bedtime, doesn't that mean you can go to sleep whenever? ... Which is not good for a kid your age?"

"Nope." He smacked my hands away, stuck his apple in his teeth, and fixed his hair, which I'd messed up with my noogie. He took the apple out of his mouth before licking his lips and speaking again. "I don't sleep at all, so that's why I don't have a bedtime."

"..." I blinked a few times, and cupped my hand to my ear. "S'cuse me, but did I just hear a six-year-old say he doesn't sleep?"

"Why? That a bad thing?"

"Dude! You're six! You should be sleeping half the day!"

"Should I?"

"..." I hung my head. "Okay, we're going to have a funeral now."

"Why?"

"Because you've officially killed my brain." I brought my head up and twirled a strand of my hair which had come loose from my admittedly sloppy ponytail. "Why don't you sleep?"

"I can't."

"Like... insomnia? Like you try to sleep but you never can?"

"No, not like that. I mean... kind of, but not really. See, um..." He now had the apple in his lap, and one hand was rubbing over the left side of his chest, as if it hurt. "If... If I tell you, do you promise you won't hate me?"

"Dude. If I was going to hate someone for telling me something, it wouldn't be over something as pointless as a sleep disorder."

"Pinky swear that you won't stop liking me. You gotta pinky swear, Kame-chan."

"Okay, okay." I wrapped my pinky around his, marveling at how much smaller it was than mine, for a second before putting my hand back into my lap. "So why can't you sleep?"

"'Cause... I have this... demon inside me. Its name's Shukaku. I mean, he's kinda nice... when he's not making me hurt people 'cause I get mad or sad. But other times he's just annoying. Like... since he eats people, when I sleep he eats my mind and I lose a part of me."

I stared at him. And stared. And stared. My underdeveloped brain was trying to process that he had a demon _inside of him_, not that he _was_ a little demon or had just been called that.

After about a full sixty seconds of just staring at him and thinking, all I could come up with was, "Um."

He tilted his head as he looked at me, and nodded. "Yeah. That's what most people say at first. I mean, if they don't just start throwing rocks at me."

"What the fuck! People throw rocks at you?" I got up, looking for something to take out my anger on. So what the hell if he had a demon inside him? _He_ wasn't a demon, he just had to keep one inside him! He was still a person!

After about half a minute of looking wildly around the house for something to punch, I whirled around to face my charge. "Hey Gaara?"

"Yeah."

I pointed down at the floor. "Is it okay if I have a temper tantrum on the carpet?"

"Um... as long as you don't break anything, I don't think Yashamaru will mind."

"Damn it!" I dropped to the floor, rolled over onto my back, and began to hit and kick the carpeted floor. "It's not fair! People are so stupid! Next person who does that I'll kill 'em! _God_, I knew I wasn't ready for the real world!" I wasn't crying now; I wasn't sad, the tantrum was just all fury coming out. I'd decided before that I wasn't ready for the real world, and here I was being faced with the fact that it was just as terrible as I'd imagined.

It hit me harder than I thought it would. It was like a cold, hard slap in the face, telling me to buck up or just crawl somewhere and die.

I was _not_ going to crawl somewhere and die. I admit that Gaara and I got off on a rocky start, but I refused to just give up and leave him. If I didn't get all this out, I'd go right back to my aunt, begging her to shelter me from the world. As long as I released all that now, I'd be fine.

"Kame-chan! Kame-chan!" I felt Gaara come to my side, taking one of my hands and holding it tightly. "Don't hurt yourself, Kame-chan! I don't know how to take care of somebody who's hurt and if you get hurt I don't want you to die!"

After a minute I sat up and grabbed him, pulling him close. All I wanted to do was hold him... make sure nobody ever hurt him or gave him any emotional wounds. "Maybe I need this," I said, realizing that my voice was shaky. "I need this. I need to take care of you, and I need to get attached to you."

His arms circled around my waist, and he laid his head on my breastbone below my neck. "Do you need to love me, Kame-chan?"

"... Maybe..." I rubbed his back. "Do you need to love me? I mean, can you? Since I'm so different..."

"I don't know, Kame-chan." He looked up at me, and I could see a kind of loneliness in his eyes. I wondered if that was what my eyes looked like. "I've never loved anybody before. I don't think I know how."

"Makes two of us, babe." I sat back, letting him lie on top of me, and started stroking his hair. "I guess we'll figure it out together, huh?"

"I guess so." His arm was over my stomach, the other arm still holding my hand. "You'll help me, right?"

"As long as you help me too."

"I'll try, Kame-chan."

"Good boy. Now... how do _you_ keep from falling asleep? I'm getting tired."

"Well... Yashamaru has a bunch of coffee in the kitchen."

"You know how to make it?"

"Yeah, sometimes I do it in the mornings."

I pointed to the kitchen without even looking up. "Extra strong. No milk. No sugar. Please go."

I felt him sit up a little. "You mean you're gonna stay awake with me?"

"Hey, I'm nothing like your other babysitters, right? Did they stay awake with you?"

"No."

"There's your answer, kiddo."

"Okay." He sat totally up, but then leaned down and hugged me around the neck. "I'll do anything for you, Kame-chan. You're better than all my other babysitters put together." He let go and I could hear his footsteps running into the kitchen. "I'll be right back!"

As soon as he was gone, I reached up and rubbed the spot around my neck where he'd had his arms. He'd done it a little too tight...

I giggled a little as I lowered my hand and spread my arms across the carpet, blowing out a breath.

... Was it so hard to believe there was such a thing as a good kind of pain?

**Oooo, short time no see. ;P**

**Sorry for the quick update, got to writing it and didn't feel like stopping. Next chapter you'll probably be seeing more of the others and how Kame interacts with people besides Gaara.**

**By da way, I work with kids around little Gaara's age... so when Kame's thinking about it all, rationalizing his behavior or theorizing or whatev, I can TOTALLY vouch for her. XD**

**Hope you enjoyed! ^^ Drop meh a line cuz meh love reviews. I just eat 'em up. OM NOM NOM.**

**Gaara: ... Ok... it's a bad thing when someone scares ME... -_-'**


	5. Chapter 5

Hoo boy. I won't lie to you people, the first night was _rough beyond rough_. You know the thing they call in golf... the deepest rough, when it goes off and gets stuck in a sand pit or something? This was rougher than _that_. Yeah.

Don't get me wrong, Gaara was fine. It was the staying awake that was the problem. I was used to sleeping like seven hours a night, so... yeah. Losing those seven hours left me a zombie, and it was hard to stay up. Gaara provided me with coffee almost constantly, and he always laughed when I downed a whole cup in five seconds. I'd never made anyone laugh before, and I kind of liked it... so I kept on doing that. After a while I stopped though, 'cause I hated to see the poor kid run to the kitchen nonstop when I finished one quick like that.

Sometimes I nodded off, and when I did the next thing I knew I'd have a water balloon all over me. Gaara had dragged a bucket of them into the living room. And if the water balloons didn't wake me up, he'd also brought in this air horn to blow in my ear. Where the hell the kid _got_ all of this shit was totally, unfathombly beyond me. I mean, really - I was with him the whole time from when I picked him up. When would he have had time to fill the balloons up? And where'd he get the air horn? Did he like steal it from his uncle's room or something?

Anyway... he tried to keep me awake by turning the TV to this crazy, obnoxiously loud metal channel called Heavy Last Stop. (To think somebody got paid big money to come up with _that_.) Every song sounded like violent death... or at least violence. It seriously worked for keeping me awake... until I actually got used to it. By the time "Situations" came on, I had worn myself out belting my way through the _Metalocalypse _theme song (_"Dethklok Dethklok Dethklok Dethklok!"_) and "Master of Puppets".

Once he'd buzzed that air horn in my ear about a billion times to wake me up from that, he turned it to this techno, DDR-type station. We kept it there through a few songs to see if I'd fall asleep to it or not. Once we finally figured out that "Romeo and Juliet", "Bumblebee", and "Diggy Dum" wouldn't put me out, we both rejoiced and kept it there. When I went to the bathroom, I discovered that Gaara hid the remote so I wouldn't be able to find it and change the channel.

We got up to talking about our favorite movies and stories. His was _Beauty and the Beast_; mine was _The King and I_. We decided to be silly and sang "Be Our Guest" together and started laughing. Actually, I had done one of Lumiere's parts and Gaara said my accents were funny so he started laughing, and I started laughing too. He asked if _The King and I_ had any songs, and I said boy did it. He asked if I could sing one, so I graciously sang "Shall I Tell You What I Think of You" to the coatrack. By the time I was practically screaming "_Toads! Toads! All of your people are TOADS_!", pushing, kicking, and just generally abusing the poor coatrack, Gaara was rolling around on the floor laughing. The song kinda went downhill after that though, 'cause we both started laughing too hard and I couldn't go on after he started screeching with laughter after I was all "_YES, your Majestay! NO, your Majestay! Tell us how LOW to GO, YOUR MAJESTAY_!"

... Yeah, I think somebody at the house closest to us yelled at us to shut the fuck up, but I really didn't give two shits because we were having fun.

I didn't think I'd make it, but at last the sun rose up. I almost shouted with joy. I jumped up and started doing jumping jacks, yelling, "Gaara! Gaara, it's finally time for _breakfast_! I haven't eaten in seven hours! Thank Sand for the sun!" And I ran into the kitchen and started cooking, all while Gaara giggled and turned the TV to a morning children's program. I didn't care _what_ I was hearing at this point, as long as it wasn't, "_I am a superstar, and I don't care who you are_!"

I just about jumped with joy as I was getting everything organized. I'd actually made it through the first night of no sleep. As I poured myself more coffee and boiled water for oatmeal, I let out a sigh. There was just one thing I absolutely _had_ to wonder about now. Would the next night be easier, since I'd already done it once? Or would it be just as difficult?

Pouring the oatmeal mix in with the water, I decided that no, tonight would be just as hard. Some things, I'd learned, never got easier. No matter how many times you did it, it would always just be a grueling task.

"Gaara! Did you put waffles in the toaster?"

"Yeah."

"I'm making oatmeal!" I groaned, whacking my stirring spoon against the pot. "If you eat both of them - the oatmeal _and_ a waffle - then that's way too much starch. And it's just breakfast, even!"

"So?" he asked, walking over to the toaster to get his forbidden waffle. He said it like he seriously didn't see the problem. That was the thing I hated about kids - they always thought _they_ were right and _you _were just a big dummy-head.

"_So_? _So_, if you keep eating like that you'll end up like _me_!"

"Awesome!" He came back over with the waffle in his mouth, and reached for a bowl. "Oatmeal!"

"Gaara, _no_!" I blocked the counter. "I won't have you growing up like me. You get bullied around enough already, you don't need more."

"But Kame-chaaaaaaan..." he whined, hopping up and trying to grab a bowl.

"The only _but_ around here, Gaara, is yours that I'll give a spanking if you don't listen to me. I'm in charge."

It was at this time, however, that a knock on the door resounded and a voice called out. "Gaara! Why is the door locked?" It was undoubtedly male, but it leaned more toward an effeminate boy than a ninja. Or how I thought of a ninja, at least.

And with that, it seemed that Gaara forgot all about me. "Yashamaru's back! Yashamaru's back! Wai!" He ran into the living room to open the door.

And I was left to catch his waffle when he ran, barely grabbing it before it came in contact with the floor. "_Gaara_!"

I went into the living room after him - partly to return his half-eaten, hotter-than-hell waffle, but mostly to see who my competition in receiving Gaara's affection was. I _had_ to see; I know it sounds selfish now, but I was actually a little jealous. I was greeted first with indifference, and this Yashamaru person was greeted with enthusiasm? I didn't see how he could be more special than me. Gaara had told me that we would love each other, after all. It was a little bit insulting of him, really.

When Gaara unfastened the chain lock and opened the door, I wasn't sure what to expect of Yashamaru. I just about held my breath as he pulled the door open. It was highly nerve-wracking, the anticipation that filled me up so that I could have shivered from it. (Hey look, a _Rocky Horror_ reference! Like there's not enough of THOSE floating around these days...)

I tell you what, I almost thought Gaara's uncle was a woman.

I kid you not, this man was the most borderline gender-bent I'd ever seen in my life. All he needed were some shipments from Instaboobs . com (that place my mom ordered from) and he could probably pass for my own aunt. He was very beautiful, with this corn-silk-like hair, the exact same color as the sand outside. I could have gone out and picked up a handful of sand, poured it over his head, and you wouldn't be able to tell the difference. Those eyes, someplace in between lavender and navy blue, so soft and pitying and absolutely pure. Bandages wrapped thinly and loosely around his forehead, a replacement for the headbands I knew ninja wore. A metal apron was draped over his easy-fitting blue clothes, and at the bottom were dark sandals.

We just stared at each other for a minute, I think - just looked back and forth, sizing each other up. Finally I broke my stare, handing Gaara his waffle which I was still holding and which had probably burned my damn hand. "You forgot this."

"Oh yeah." He took it and started eating. "Welcome home, Yashamaru! This is Kame-chan." He graciously pointed at me with the part of the waffle he'd just made little teeth-marks in. "Kame-chan, this is Yashamaru, my uncle. He's my mom's big brother."

"I see." I felt bad that I was practically glaring holes in the guy's head, close to just exploding in the fire of envy. "Why don't you go watch your show?"

"You mean I'm allowed to eat in the living room?"

I winked at him, momentarily abandoning my attempt at erasing Yashamaru with my bare eyes. "_I'm_ in charge, ain't I? I'll be the one cleaning the crumbs up if you get them anywhere."

He nodded, and nuzzled his head against my stomach before bolting into the living room - which, admittedly, wasn't too far away from where we were standing. "Thanks, Kame-chan!"

I gave a nod back, then my attention - and angry eyes - returned to Yashamaru. "Huh."

The confusion had faded from his eyes. "You must be the new babysitter. I guess that's why the door was locked."

"Well, I can't be too careful. There are weirdos _everywhere_." I declined to mention that actually I was one of those weirdos - but he didn't need to know that. As long as I wasn't doing any harm, what would it hurt?

"Oh. That makes sense... it's just that Gaara usually leaves the door unlocked around this time so I can get in." He rubbed the back of his head, obviously not very intimidated by me. "So... Kame."

"Yashamaru."

"... Am I allowed to come into my own house?"

"..." I turned around swiftly, heading for the kitchen. "Take your shoes off."

"What?"

"Take. Your. Shoes. _Off_."

"Um... okay."

I smirked at my "victory" over him, before once again pulling Gaara back from the TV. "Too _close_, Gaara. You're going to end up as a blind hermit, I swear..."

"Sowwy, Tame-shan," he mumbled, his mouth full of waffle.

I rolled my eyes, mentally smacking myself. "And I've taught you nothing? Do _not_ talk with food in your mouth. It's very disrespectful, and people usually don't like being hit with something that's been in their dinner partner's mouth. How do you ever expect to get a girlfriend?"

"_Gross_!" Gaara swallowed and then stuck his tongue out. "I don't like girls. That's just dis_gusting_, Kame-chan."

I rolled my eyes. Typical kids, thinking they wouldn't grow up and get married someday. I was nice enough not to mention (right now, at least) that he would eventually get married to a girl and have cute little babies with her.

"Hurry up and finish your food, Gaara." Yashamaru placed his drawstring bag down by the coatrack I'd been singing to at four that morning, which made me giggle mentally. "We only have fifteen minutes to get you to school, and you like to be early."

"Yeah, I do!" Gaara jumped up, shoving the rest of his waffle in his mouth. He opened his mouth, then looked at me, and decided it would be smart to finish chewing and swallow it before he spoke. He _was_ speaking to me this time though. "I like it 'cause when we come in, we're always playing, and so if I get there early I can get to the best toys before anybody else gets them!"

"Cool." I reached down and flicked the front of his shirt. "Now, I think you ought to go change, sweet stuff. You got crumbs all over this thing. Go get a new one, and make it fast."

"Okay, Kame-chan!" He ran off, presumably headed to his room.

I shook my head. "How the hell can he be like _that_ after no sleep? I just don't get it."

I walked into the kitchen, where Yashamaru was getting some of the coffee I'd made. Well, ha-ha on him because it wasn't warm anymore. So _there_, person who steals Gaara away from me. "So... what's the deal with that picture in there?" I asked, pointing with an offhanded gesture toward the living room.

I had been wondering, as my eyes had been drifting to it all night when I was trying to concentrate on staying awake. It was a pretty woman, probably no more than twenty-one. She had blonde-ish brown hair, and a cute face, and she was smiling. Her outfit was simple, and I got the feeling that she was not, never had been, or never would be a ninja. Gaara had been looking at it too, so naturally I was curious. And much as I resented Yashamaru for being Gaara's favorite, he was really the only one I could rely on for info at the moment.

"Hmm? Oh." Yashamaru took a sip of coffee, made a face, and dumped it in the sink. Like I said, _ice cold_... so technically I got a little bit of revenge in there too. "That was the youngest of my siblings, my sister Karura. She was Gaara's mother."

"Well, where is she?" I leaned against the counter. "Shouldn't she be here taking care of her kid instead of her hubby hiring _me_ when I've not babysat in my life, just because you got an extra shift? Although it's the only reason I have a job so..." I was actually a little torn. Yashamaru may have been taking Gaara's affection, but then again the only reason I knew Gaara was because he could no longer be there when Gaara got home. I didn't know whether to glomp him or roll my eyes at him.

"She's dead." His voice had grown more bitter and cold - sorta like that coffee he just dumped down the garbage disposal. I had a feeling that maybe he wasn't as fond of Gaara as he'd initially appeared. The look on his face soured too, and he looked down at the floor instead of making eye contact with me. "They put Shukaku inside of Gaara while she was still pregnant. And when she gave birth to him, a sacrifice was required. They had planned to use me, since I volunteered. But because she was already losing so much blood, they weren't sure if she was going to make it even if I was killed. So they just went ahead and used her anyway, after she named Gaara."

I blinked a few times, simply staring at him. I didn't quite remember asking for the entire story, but that was fine, I guessed. "I see... so there's no 'Mommy' in Mommy and Me?"

"No little sister either."

"Ah. Well, I gotta give the kid props - after all, if I went through even half the shit he has, I'd be in a mental hospital."

"Well, _you_ ought to be right now - you're crazy enough. So is he." Yashamaru sighed, slamming the cup he'd used into the other side of the sink. "Well, I should get going with him. I expect the dishes to be washed by the time I get back in an hour, and also I'd like it if you would be so kind as to make lunch for the both of us... and also, actually heat the coffee up tomorrow."

"Got it." Inside I was fighting a deeply conflicted eternal battle: keeping my inner self from strangling the guy. Telling me what to do _and_ insinuating that being crazy was a bad thing! I bet he just had something up his ass 'cause he hadn't slept all night either. "Um... see you at nine then, I guess."

"Have a nice morning." He walked into the living room, leaving me to blink a couple times, then hurry after. "Gaara, are you ready?" His voice instantly snapped back to the tone that was so sweet I felt like going to the dentist after hearing it. _God_, what a fake... if he was tired he ought to have just admitted it and not sugar-coated everything. Gaara would have understood - he understood that _I_ was tired, even while he was obnoxiously blowing that damn air horn in my ear...

Gaara came down the stairs, and then hugged me tightly, grabbing my hand. "Bye, Kame-chan! See you after school. Hey, can you make cookies for a snack today?"

"Yeah, sure. That'd be fine. I feel like cookies anyway." I hugged him back, smiling. "You bring home a better drawing today than the one I left in your backpack, ne?" **(1)**

I looked down, and his face was almost as red as his hair. "You, um... saw the other one too?"

"Yup. And I'm telling you right now, Gaara, I better not see anything else _like_ it coming home from now on." Boy, did I sound like my mother - pushing and pushing, just like her. Oh well... at least I was pushing him to stop doing something that was damaging his self-image, and not to be perfect. I squeezed him, then leaned down and brushed my lips against his hair for just half a second. "Don't worry, the day's just gonna _fly_ by."

"Okay. Bye, see you soon." He turned away and took Yashamaru's hand, practically dragging the poor man out the door. "Come on, come on!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming." Yashamaru turned for one last glance at me, and his eyes betrayed his smile. "See you soon, Kame-kun," he commented before shutting the door - hard.

I looked at the dishes in the sink, and frowned, running my fingers through my bangs. Something was seriously off about Yashamaru.

I didn't know what it was, and I wasn't sure that I really wanted to know.

**(1) ne = huh/isn't that right (Kame's using "huh")**

**OOH THE SUSPENSE. I sense some conflict coming up between Kame and Yashamaru. It seems she already knows that Yashamaru isn't what he appears to be...**

**But don't worry, I got him back for being an ass. I drew a comic in which Kame and Gaara pranked him by dropping a water balloon on him, he was PISSED. ... and then they had a dance partay! XD**

**Sorry for the wait but here it is! And remember: only your review can stop forest fires. *is knocked unconscious by Smoky the Bear* Oh yeah... forgot that's HIS thing... ummmm...**

**Okay: only your reviews can make little Gaara smile! ^^ Well, that and cookies :D**

**Bye bye! ^^**


	6. Chapter 6

All in all, I had a pretty good morning before Yashamaru got back. I ate my oatmeal while I washed dishes (_still_ not sure how I didn't get soapy oatmeal), flopped down on the couch and watched VH1 for a while.

I have to admit, the house was lonely without Gaara. If he were there, I probably would have had more fun and I'd definitely be moving. I would be painting with him, reading to him, maybe going into the den which had no carpet and having a sock-foot race... yeah. I certainly missed the kid, that was for sure. Without him around I felt tired, the full weight of losing sleep crashing down on me.

I rested my chin down on my chest and sighed. I probably ought to call my aunt and tell her I'd made other living arrangements, plus I had to go pick up all my stuff. I just didn't feel like it right now; too tired from the staying up all night having a party with Gaara. Hey, there was an idea - just take Gaara with me tonight when I went to my aunt's. I couldn't leave him alone, after all, and during the day I'd probably always be too tired to do much. Well, maybe not tonight... I could survive without most of my stuff, especially since I had Gaara to keep my entertained.

I must have fallen asleep, because the next thing I knew I was being shaken awake. "Kame! Kame, would you get up? This place needs cleaned."

I blinked awake, rubbing my eyes, and looked at whoever had been enough of a bastard to wake me up. Ah, Yashamaru; well, that made sense now. "Hey, Yasha. What goes on?"

"I'd like you to clean up the living room now. So get up, get out the vacuum, straighten the carpets, and fix the couch." He began to walk away, toward the stairs.

"Hey!" I sat up, practically twisting my neck to look at him. "Why don't you just frickin' do it instead of making me do it?"

"Are you kidding me? I just spent about nineteen hours working, nonstop. I only get four hours of sleep, and I'm taking it."

"So you're going to sleep through lunch?"

"Just put something away for me and I'll get it on the way."

"Right then..." I stood up, stretching. Now... since Yashamaru said four hours of sleep, that meant he had to leave before one. Maybe if I got the living room cleaned up quickly and made lunch, I could get some sleep too, before I had to pick Gaara up. Sounded like a plan to me. Woo-hoo, plan woman!

... Yeah, I know how lame that just sounded. Shut up and leave me alone...

I hurried and straightened everything up around the room. I uncrinkled the blanket on the floor, spreading it out very neatly over the carpet. I fluffed up the pillows on the couch and made it up nice. After that I threw two things of ramen in the microwave, and put them both in the fridge. I took a sticky note from the pad by the phone in the kitchen, and wrote a little message for Yashamaru. _Hey, ramen's in the fridge. One's yours, one's mine. Wake me at your own risk and set the alarm to wake me up at 1:20. Have a nice day, see you tomorrow._ And then I drew a little smiley face. I'm just a ray of sunshine, aren't I?

After that, I proceeded to walk back into the living room, collapse down on the couch I'd just done up all pretty, and fell asleep dead as a donut.

... And yes, in my mind, that _does_ mean something.

I really hoped Yashamaru didn't have the balls to wake me up. If he did, I'd chase him around with the frying pan and make him late for work so he'd have to stay longer and I could get more time with Gaara. That would be _awesome_.

* * *

I woke up to this _obnoxious_ ringing, and wondered why Gaara had walked home by himself. I thought he was blowing the air horn in my ear again, but then I noticed the clock on the little table by my head. I looked at it, noticing Yashamaru had set it correctly for me, and whacked the OFF button with my palm.

Since I promised Gaara I'd make cookies, I had to wake up earlier than 2:00. So I went into the kitchen, quickly made the batter, and tossed them in the oven. While I waited for them to bake, I ate the ramen I'd made for my lunch. It was kinda cold on account of it was in the fridge for like four hours, but hey. Food is food, especially to me.

Once the cookies were done, I set them out to cool, but put a few paper towels over them. I wasn't sure I should leave the house unlocked, but Gaara and Yashamaru had the previous day. There was no way I was putting those cookies in the way of danger though, hence my paper towel precaution.

And once I did that, I made sure everything was all good, and left to go get Gaara. There wasn't really any harm in going early.

When I got there, I shifted my weight from foot to foot, trying to keep myself busy. Maybe it hadn't been right to come early; remember that short attention span I mentioned a while ago? Yeah... it's about two minutes. So I got very bored very quickly once I got there.

There were only a few other people there. One of the guys noticed I was fidgeting, so he turned to look at me. "New here?"

I glanced over. "Yeah, kinda." I fanned myself, rolling my eyes. "Are we expected to just stand here in this heat? It's hot today, even for here."

The guy chuckled. "Yeah, well... you do know we're allowed to go in, right?"

I raised an eyebrow. Nobody had informed me of this! "No... do we just go sit in the hall or something?"

"Nah. What you do is go into the classroom and sit down somewhere unassuming. So you don't distract the kids, I mean. They usually have freetime at the end though, so it's a little hard to distract them unless you're more fun than the toys... or have candy."

"I have cookies waiting at home for the one I'm babysitting. How do you know all this? You done it before?"

"Yeah, my sister goes here." He winked at me. "It's a lot cooler in there, too."

That was all the incentive I needed to practically rush into the building.

Once I reached the kindergarten, Takamine Sensei's classroom, I glanced in the window. I could see the teacher, a pretty thirty-something woman with blonde hair who I guessed was Takamine Sensei, standing on the carpet, the kids sitting in a circle around her while she was talking.

Anger rose up in my chest when I saw that nobody was sitting next to Gaara. He was sitting by himself near the chalkboard, still in the circle, but with no one on either side of him. They had all inched away, like they were scared of him or something. I didn't get that. Sure, I'd heard the stories about "the village demon", although not from my mother - actually from my aunt, but only when I'd gotten old enough not to check the closet every night - but Gaara didn't seem like a demon to me. I'd pictured the demon as something big and scary... not something like Gaara. The kid had to be lifted up to reach the sink, and _he_ was what everyone was afraid of? People could be so stupid sometimes.

I quietly opened the door and snuck in, sitting down next to what I assumed to be some sort of sensory table. It looked like it had blue sand or Play Dough or something in it. I crossed my legs and began just observing what was going on.

Takamine Sensei passed by Gaara, stepping very near one of the other students to avoid brushing against him, and underlined something she'd already written, _1-10_, on the board. "And by tomorrow I expect all of you to be able to recite all of the numbers from one to ten in front of the class. Ask your parents or siblings for help if you need it." She then placed the chalk down and dusted her hands. "Alright, you have fifteen minutes for free time until school is over. I'll be at my desk." I noticed that her eyes flickered to me for a fraction of a second before walking over to her desk in the corner.

The kids went a little wild. Most of them jumped up and began talking loudly as they moved to their favorite activities. Some of them formed groups, and there were even a couple of boys letting girls play dress-up with them. In hopes of impressing them maybe? Feh, good luck with _that_.

Gaara almost immediately rushed over to me. "Kame-chan!" I caught him, grinning, as he hugged me tightly. He let go and I noticed he'd brought his teddy bear with him today. I rolled my eyes as I realized he must have snuck it in his backpack when I wasn't looking. I wanted to take a needle and thread to it, replace the eyes. "What are you doing here during school time?"

I shrugged. "Hey, I blame you for leaving me. It's not as fun without you there. All I did was sleep all morning. And I made lunch for Yasha."

"Yashamaru?"

"Yeah, that's what I'm calling him from now on."

"You're funny, Kame-chan. Will you hold Teddy while I play in the sand?"

"Sure." I took the bear from him and hugged it to my own chest. I'd forgotten how good it felt to have something to hold, to comfort yourself and leave behind any sadness. Stuffed animals just had a way of making you feel better. "Are you going to make a sand castle?"

He hadn't even started yet, and he was shifting from one foot to the other very quickly. "A-Actually, I changed my mind. Before I play, I think I better go to the bathroom!" He headed for the door. "I'll be right back, Kame-chan! Don't let Teddy wander off!"

I giggled softly as I watched him leave, then remembered something that kids sometimes didn't remember to do. "Wash your hands or you don't get cookies!" I shouted after him, hoping he heard me.

I leaned against the wall, picking up the bear and looking at him very carefully. "Judging by how worn you are," I commented, "I'm guessing Gaara needs a lot of comforting." I put it back down in my lap. "Don't worry, I'll fix everything."

I noticed Takamine Sensei walking over, and I groaned. Was I seriously in trouble? I didn't even go to this school! What the hell could I possibly have done? I straightened up as much as I could as the looming shadow fell over me. "Yes, ma'am?"

"It would do you well not to disrupt my class again," she told me, crossing my arms over her chest.

I crossed my arms right back. "I'm not disrupting. If you haven't noticed, they're playing. And I doubt I have anything more fun than this room in my pocket."

Her blue eyes glared down at me, making me squirm just a little. "I would appreciate you not coming in here again, Miss...?"

"Kame Chi."

"Right, Miss Chi."

"If you don't mind my asking, what exactly am I doing to cause disruption?"

"Interacting with that demon. My students don't care for that... _thing_, and frankly I don't either." She turned to leave. "It sickens me that you are stupid enough to touch him, let alone show him affection like that. I barely tolerate _him_ in this class, and I'm a tolerant woman. Do not come here until class is completely over."

I glared at her back as she walked off in that prissy way of hers. I can't tell you how much I wanted to yank Gaara out of this class and homeschool him, no matter how much I didn't know about the village alliances or foreign policies or what chemicals you had to put in a tube to _not_ blow up a science lab. He shouldn't have been around people like this - not now, not ever. If I could have protected him from that, believe me I would have. But I had the feeling that Gaara's dad (you know, Kazekage-sama, the all-powerful being who had the power to fire me, exile me, or both?) wouldn't be too happy about his son learning how to launch water balloons from a sixteen-year-old high school dropout.

When Gaara got back, he happily showed me how to make a sand castle the right way. Apparently, there was a wrong way to do it. Once he was done, he wrote both our names in the sand in front of it using his index finger. He didn't seem to mind that he'd accidentally made his "r" backwards, and I didn't correct him. He was having fun, that was all that mattered.

Once the bell rang, I stood up and gave Gaara his bear, opening the door for him. I made a point of us being the first ones out. "Did you make cookies like I asked, Kame-chan?" he asked, letting his teddy dangle from one hand and nearly dragging on the ground.

I grinned a little. "If I said no?"

"Teddy would hit you on the head."

I snickered. "Don't worry, they're cooling as we speak."

"Ooh, yum... _wait_, what kind?"

"Chocolate chip. _Is_ there any other kind of cookie?"

"Yeah."

"Wrong, sir!" I put my hand on his head. "All those other things you _think_ are cookies, are really just little cakes _trying_ to be cookies."

"Well, I've never heard somebody say a peanut butter cake, or an oatmeal cake."

I snorted. "They exist, dude. They _exist_. Just like ghosts."

"G-Ghosts are real?"

"Maybe. I dunno. I've never talked to one, so I couldn't tell ya."

"You're lying about the cookies though."

"What a ninja you're going to be, hon. So hey, do you need me to help you with your numbers?"

"Nope! I got 'em all memorized. You wanna hear?"

"Okay, shoot."

"One, two, three, four, five, nine, seven, eight, six, ten," he said quickly, all in one breath.

I deadpanned. "... So we'll work on six and nine."

**Waiiiii, so sad. :( Poor Gaara chan...**

**Why da quick update? ... I have no life, remember? And I really want to finish this cuz it's FUN. F is for friends who do stuff together, u is for u and me! N is for 'nywhere and n'nytime at all... in the... um... well, Suna's not really a sea... XD**

**Hope you liked! Oh and excuse any typos, my keyboard is sticking a little... sometimes it happens without my knowledge. |D**

**Reviews is wuv! ^^**


	7. Chapter 7

For about a week, Gaara and I went through our normal routine. Have breakfast with Yashamaru (who was still sore about my calling him Yasha), me sleeping while he was at school, making cookies, me picking him up, us hanging out for a while, having dinner, staying awake all night trying to think of things to do so I wouldn't pass out on the poor kid, and start the cycle again in the morning. It was becoming normal, and thankfully I was settling into it quite easily. Some people might have been irritable from the lack of sleep - well, okay, I was irritable around everyone but Gaara, and sometimes even him. But hey, do you blame me? After seeing the way everyone was treating Gaara, I was beginning to hate everybody who wasn't me or him. But otherwise, I was totally normal. Kept all of my personality, every other health part of me was intact (make no comments about my twisted mind), and I was actually having fun. Apparently nobody else had had fun with this job before, just like ignoring Gaara, so I was glad I could be different.

One night, around eight-forty-five (mwahaha, specifics), I had begun to get bored, watching Gaara watch TV, swinging my leg off the couch. The only getting four hours of sleep a day was kinda catching up with me now, and I was determined not to let it get the best of me. I had never been this determined before, and I was trying to think of ways to keep us having fun together. We'd already worn out all the board games, where Gaara usually kicked my ass with no mercy (I found it both odd and funny that someone ten years younger than I was could reach the Candy Castle before I could), and one of his shows was on now. As he'd told me, there was a marathon of _Hitori-kun_ on tonight, until nine.

Another glance at the clock revealed it to be eight-fifty. How the night was passing slowly this time. We still had roughly eleven hours before Yashamaru got here... before I could sleep. He seemed content with watching this, but once the marathon was over we'd have to find something to do, which could be a real pain in this house. Yashamaru only kept board games here, nothing else for entertainment really. The TV, board games, and the kitchen, and that was it. Well, Gaara had some toys in his room, but I'd never been in there and had no idea what it was like.

I was suddenly struck with something. I still hadn't gotten my stuff from my aunt's house yet. Wasn't I supposed to do that a while ago? I didn't have any of my things, and I was damn lucky most of Yashamaru's gender-neutral clothes fit me... but he didn't need to know that I'd been raiding his androgynous closet after baths.

I picked up my cell phone, which was the only thing I had, from the table, my thumb hovering over my aunt's speed-dial. "Hey Gaara?" I called, noticing his show was on commercial.

He looked back at me, and smiled. "What is it, Kame-chan?"

"I need to get some things from my aunt's house. You wouldn't mind coming along, would you? I can't leave you alone."

"Of course not!" At this point he jumped up on the couch and snuggled up against me, pressing his back against my stomach. "I don't like being alone anyway. The house is scary when nobody's in it, and I hear noises." He shifted his position and giggled. "You're soft, Kame-chan."

I rolled my eyes, just barely resisting the urge to flick him on the ear again. "Don't remind me." I pressed down on the button. "I'm going to be talking to my aunt for a minute, so please don't talk, okay?"

"Okay." He rested his head against my breastbone, his hair tickling my skin.

I put the phone to my ear and waited. I hummed a little as I did, yawning.

At last my aunt, Hana, answered the phone. "Kame-chan! Where have you been?"

"Sorry, I've been too busy to call, Hana-oba-san **(1)**. But guess what, I found a job."

"Oh, really? What are you doing now?"

"I'm a babysitter."

She snorted. "Well, I never would have pegged _you_ for being that type."

"It was kinda the only job that Kazekage-sama could find for me, so I wasn't picky."

"I see. How are things working out? You haven't killed the kid, have you?"

"Pfft." I rolled my eyes again. "Come on, give me _some_ credit. I'm not that mean."

"..."

"Okay, I can _be_ that mean. But no, kid's still alive and kickin', keeping me busy. It's actually really fun."

"Where are you living?"

"Ah, I get to live in the house because his uncle works most of the day and I have to take care of him for a while."

"Well, it's good to hear that you're not on the streets somewhere."

"I know, right? Well, I have to come pick up the rest of my stuff. Is it okay if I come tonight? In about ten minutes?"

"Hey, sure. Don't leave the kid alone though. Children are masters of getting into things when adults aren't around... and sometimes when we are."

"I was actually going to bring him with me. He doesn't like being in the house alone anyways."

"Great. I'll see you in ten minutes, then."

"Right. Bye, oba-san."

"Bye."

I shut my phone and slipped it into my shirt, so it was resting inside my bra. Probably wasn't the best move, since I kinda hit Gaara in the head when that happened. "Whoops! Sorry, Gaara - I didn't hurt you, did I?"

"Huh?" He turned to look at me, tilting his head. "I didn't feel anything."

"Oh... okay, then." I settled back into my position on the couch to watch the end of the show with him.

* * *

Once the last episode of _Hitori-kun_ was totally over (I'm talking Gaara wouldn't move until the ending song had hit the last note), we headed out of the house. I locked the door as a precaution, since it was pretty late. Like I'd said to Yashamaru, you never knew what kind of weirdos were out there.

We walked to my aunt's house, hands clasped together and swinging our arms like we had the first day. Gaara was kicking happily at the pebbles in the street, and I was just looking around. There were some people out, and they all looked at Gaara with this hateful expression. You know what I did? Gave them a "back-the-hell-off-before-your-ass-gets-kicked-Kame-style" glare, which scared most of them into looking the opposite way.

Finally we reached Hana's house. I knocked on the door, momentarily letting go of Gaara's hand. "Hana-oba-san, it's me!"

"Door's open," she called. "Come right in."

I took Gaara's hand again and tugged on it. "C'mon."

I pushed the door open and walked inside, closing it after me. "Oba-san, is my stuff still in the guest room?"

"Yeah, haven't moved it." She was doing something with her TV, holding a half-empty (or half-full) glass in her other hand. "Sands above, you'd think the cable wouldn't go out so easily when all that's touching it is dust particles. Damn sandstorms."

She turned around, shaking her blonde hair (same as my mother's) out, and smiled at me.

For a second, I allowed myself to childishly believe something about her. I let myself think that she was one of the good ones, somebody who didn't hate or fear Gaara. That she would like him as much as I did, that she wouldn't give us the same looks the people on the street did. That she wouldn't show the utter repulsion that Takamine had shown us.

For a brief moment, I believed that, because she was a part of my family, she couldn't possibly hate Gaara. Who among the world has ever thought a member of their own family, no matter how much of a temper they had, was capable of hating another human being? Who has ever, for a split second, believed such an awful thing about their own flesh and blood, a clan they were so closely tied to from birth? I didn't believe it. In that small stretch of time, I did not believe that my aunt was like everyone else.

I was wrong.

When Hana's eyes lowered to meet Gaara's face, they widened and her hand slipped. The cup she'd been holding crashed to the ground, smashing into an infinite number of hazardous glass. She stumbled back, and I saw it evident in her eyes, the one thing I had hoped not for: the fear. Her shaking hand rose and a finger pointed directly at Gaara. "K-Kame! Get that _thing_ out of my house!"

It was like my mind broke in two. Something snapped through it, sending the delicates wires and connections flying, blowing away. A jab was sent to the left side of my chest as well, where I had been told my heart made its home. I barely ignored the instinct to rush my hand up and clutch my shirt fabric where a torrent of pain was ripping through. Instead my other hand tightened around Gaara's much smaller one, and I pulled him toward me as if for protection. What _I_ could do to protect him, I had no idea. "I don't know what you're talking about," I commented, suddenly realizing how cold my voice was. It didn't sound like me at all. "Oh, I haven't introduced you, have I?" I put a hand on top of Gaara's spiky hair. "Oba-san, this is Gaara, the boy I've been hired to babysit. Gaara-kun, this is my oba-san, Hana Chi."

Gaara looked back and forth from me to my aunt. Like he wasn't quite sure whose side to take - the one who was probably right, that everyone including her hated him, or the one who was against all odds, that he had a place no matter where it was. At last, after a few seconds of deliberating, he bowed his head slowly. "I-It's a pleasure to meet you, Chi-san."

"_This_ is what you're babysitting? You didn't tell me you'd signed a blood contract with the demons." Hana took another step back. "Get that _monster_ out of here this instant or so help me, Kame, I'll..."

"You'll what? As long as I'm not living under your roof, I don't have to do as you say. And if you keep calling my charge names, _you'll_ need babysitting."

Gaara whined slightly, tugging on my shirt with his other hand. "K-Kame-chan, you're scaring me..."

"You don't think that thing's a monster? Haven't you seen what he can do?" Hana glared at Gaara, who shrunk back a little. "Go on, demon. Call

forth your sand and destroy something. She'll run away too, once she sees."

I gritted my teeth. "Shut. _Up_. And leave him alone. As soon as I get my things, we'll both be out of this hellhole you call a home."

Gaara rested his forehead on my hip for a second. "Y-You wouldn't run away from me too, would you, Kame-chan?"

"Fine!" Hana picked up a bowl from the table and raised it above her head. "If you're not going to show her, I will!"

It happened so fast. Hana hurled the bowl at us, aimed toward Gaara's face. His eyes widened, but he didn't move. I didn't move either, but that was only because I was frozen with fear. How could someone do something like that? He was six! All because she thought he was a demon?

And then, all of a sudden, it was like slow motion. A cloud of sand burst up from nowhere, rushing in front of Gaara and myself. I just stood there, stock-still, my mouth gaping open in shock. The coldness had faded from me, and left just the terror.

I heard the bowl collide with the wall of sand, and the pieces fell to the floor. The sand receded, dropping to the floor around us, and Gaara's petite hand was no longer in my grasp. My breath was heavy, and I just stared, not focusing on anything in particular. Simply trying to make sense of what had just happened.

Gaara had collapsed, on his hands and knees now. It didn't sound like he was crying, but that didn't mean he wasn't. One hand was against his head, and he was breathing hard too. "I-I'm sorry, Kame-chan," he practically shouted, moving the hand to cover his mouth. "Please don't leave me like everyone else!"

"It's too late!" Hana yelled at him. "She's already seen! She's afraid now too!"

I dropped down beside Gaara, bringing him to my eye level and checking him for any injuries, though I doubted he had any, since I didn't see the bowl hit him. I was still scared half to death though, and my hands were shaking so badly I barely kept a grip on his shoulders.

I twisted around to stare at my aunt in horror. The only thing I could come up with to say sounded incredibly stupid: "O-Oba-san!" My voice had changed again, and was now more like a frightened child's, and that was how I felt, all full of anguished confusion and disbelief. "What the hell was that? You could have hurt him!"

I brought Gaara into a tight hug, wanting to never let go of him. How, how could people be so cruel to someone so young, to someone who didn't deserve it? How was this world filled with so many evil people? Why didn't the good ones do anything to stop them? Tears came to my eyes, but I pushed them away, swallowing them down with the last trace of my fear from this ordeal. All I could feel now was anger, fury, and suddenly I realized what emotions, what feelings, pushed somebody to murder another person.

I stood up, pulling Gaara's fragile little body against mine. "Gaara," I said softly, taking relief in the sensation of his silky hair against my fingers. "I want you to go wait outside. Don't talk to anybody you don't know, and don't leave. I'll be out in a few minutes."

He nodded, all but running out of the house.

I gave my aunt a callous glare, feeling nothing but disdain towards her any longer, and walked past her into the hallway.

* * *

I gathered my things emotionlessly and walked straight out of Hana's without another word. I didn't care about her anymore, and I was never going to talk to her again if I could help it.

I found Gaara sitting outside against the doorframe, hugging his knees to his chest, arms draped over them, and his face buried in his arms. I heard him sobbing and sniffling, and I wondered how my heart could break when it had never quite been whole in the first place.

I placed my bag and purse down beside the door, kneeling down to Gaara's height now. I carefully wrapped my arms around him, pulling him closer to me. I put my face in his hair, feeling the softness of his shawl against my fingers as I held him. I didn't need to talk; I just needed to hold him. I still didn't ever want to let go of him, but I knew I had to. Right now, though, I could just be with him like this, comfort him as best I knew how.

"I'm s-sorry, Kame-chan," I heard him whisper, his tiny hands reaching up around me, just looking for something to hold, someone who cared to cling to. "Y-You don't have to pretend to like me anymore. You don't have to stay."

"Who said I had to?" I stood up, taking him with me. His feet dangled, but after a moment of fumbling his legs found their way around my waist, digging into my back. "I want to." I held him as tight as I possibly could, burying my face into his shoulder as he did the same to mine. "I'm not afraid of you. I never could be, no matter what you did. If I ever felt fear toward you..." I rubbed his back with the hand wasn't using to hold him to me. "It would be because I was afraid of losing you. And I don't hate you. Never. I could never hate you, _ever_. You know who I hate?"

He whimpered, sniffling, and I could feel his tears soaking into my bare shoulder, exposed by my tank top. He was squeezing me as tightly as he could too. "W-Who?"

"The people who hate you." I bent down, tapping him to lightly let him place his feet back on the ground. I brushed his hair back, and a sharp pain tore through my heart again at seeing his tears. "Those are the people I hate. If they can't look past stupid rumors and see who you _really_ are, then they don't matter. If they spent time with you, learned what you were really like, I know they'd love you." I put my hand palm-down on his cheek, relishing the coolness of his skin against mine. "I know I do."

He took some deep breaths, trying to become coherent enough to speak to me. He ran a hand over his eyes, though it didn't do much to wipe away the tears that were already falling and more coming. "D-Do you really love me, Kame-chan? Do you mean it?"

I put my bag on my back, and took a handkerchief out of my jeans pocket. I knelt down and brushed it over his cheeks, soaking up the tears. "Well, I'm not really sure, Gaara." I pressed the cloth into his hand, and then picked him up again, beginning to walk. "I've never... truly loved anyone before. I think that's what I feel, but... like we said earlier, we're going to have to figure it out together."

"Together." His arms wrapped around my neck, and the feeling of his smooth cheek against my breast, where he could listen to my heartbeat, was comforting to me... having someone who trusted me, who was fond enough of me to lay so close on me. Hopefully listening to my heart was comforting to him too. "Yeah... together. I think we can do that."

I hiked him up, but didn't disturb his ear against my heart. "I think so too."

I heard him yawn loudly, and I giggled under my breath. In the week I'd been with him, I hadn't ever known him to yawn or be sleepy at all; he was always energetic. It seemed like this had just worn him out. "Can we go home now, Kame-chan? I'm tired."

"Yeah." I leaned down and kissed the top of his head. This was so out of character for me, but when I was around him... it felt like this was who I really was supposed to be. Like I wasn't supposed to be this tough, pessimistic girl who was always thinking the worst of everyone else. Like I was supposed to be kind and caring, thinking the best until I was proven otherwise. I felt, for once, like... I belonged here. It just felt right. "We'll take it easy. I can't let you fall asleep, but we'll take it easy."

"Thanks, Kame-chan. I'm... I'm sorry about your aunt."

"It's okay. If she doesn't like you, she doesn't like me. And _I_ don't like people who don't like me."

"Thanks. And... Kame-chan?"

"Yeah?"

"I hope I'm your best friend, 'cause you're my best friend."

I smiled. "Oh? I'm even better than Yasha?"

"Well... you're not really _better_ than Yashamaru. I mean... he's family. So he kinda _has_ to be my friend." He pressed his hand into my back, and I was pleased to find that I could feel him close his eyes against my chest. "But you're still my best friend. You know why?"

I jostled him a little bit, just to make sure he stayed awake. "Why?"

He yawned again, his arms loosening a little around me. "'Cause you're my only friend."

**(1) - "Oba-san" is "aunt"**

**OMG so who cried reading this? Almost cried writing it... I think it's the saddest one so far. It started out a bit slow too, but I think we got to see a little bit of Kame developing more in this. Gaara a step closer to breaking, maybe.**

**So I think I'm going to change one of the categories from humor to hurt/comfort. What you guys think?**

**And WHAT am I doing here? Pulling chapters out my ass? XD I got bored, OK... even making a video, I got bored with that and came back to this... |D I'm hopeless...**

**Reviews is love! If you read, PLEASE REVIEW CUZ I APPRECIATE IT MUCHLY. *likes making up words***

**Thanks for reading, hope you liked! ^^**


	8. Chapter 8

**Me: Abridged Kakashi, would you do the honors?**

**Abridged Kakashi: Ah of course. *looks at readers* Alright, readers... welcome to the wonderful world... of FILLER.**

***screams heard in the distance***

**XD Hehe sorry. I kinda planned this out, but then when I started writing it... it sorta went in a different direction. SO sorry guys! The next couple should be better, and I REALLY don't like this one too much. I didn't really HALF-ass it, I more... um... TWO-THIRDS-assed it. XD**

**I hope you enjoy it anyway!**

* * *

It wasn't long before I had to deal with a sort of... crisis, I guess you'd call it. Everything was usually normal for Gaara and I. I guess this happened sometime around a month after we'd been together like this, me as his babysitter. About three weeks after the incident with my aunt, I suppose. This ordeal went on for maybe two weeks, but to me - and probably Gaara - it felt like absolutely _forever_.

I got more protective of Gaara after the thing with Hana. I went into the school, everyday, and sat by the door. When the bell rang, I was the first one in - and out, once Gaara had scampered over to me to go home. I wouldn't let him go anywhere alone - I even waited outside the bathroom when he used it or when he was taking a bath... just in case something were to happen. I pulled him away from everyone who wasn't me or Yashamaru - anyone who gave him those nasty stares. It was my way of keeping him safe.

It never occurred to me until much later, that perhaps I might have been keeping him too safe.

The only people I could trust the words and actions of now were Gaara and Yashamaru. As far as I was concerned, everyone else was lying like rugs. Nothing they ever said could be taken at face value. It always had to be verified. I didn't even quite trust myself, whih was a confusing thing in and of itself. Who could question, distrust, their own voice and body? How did one do such a thing? Your own thoughts, words, and actions are true because you know them to be - or they are deceitful because you know them to be. Yet sometimes I treated my own mind and extremities like a complete stranger, acting guarded even when I was alone.

I slept most of the morning, unless Yashamaru gave me some chore to complete - as if to prove my worth or something. Apparently I wasn't worth much if I couldn't cook or clean. He hadn't seemed to grasp yet that I was perfectly capable of - and excelled at - doing both.

When I got up at maybe one-twenty as I had the first time, I would make some kind of treat or snack for Gaara and I to have once we got home. Cookies, Rice Krispy bars, brownies... I even managed to make some cupcakes once. Gaara liked them, but told me next time he wanted pudding in the middle. (How was I going to do that in twenty minutes? Ha! He probably would never get it unless I set my alarm clock so it would wake my ass up earlier...) And then I picked him up at two, we ate our snack, and he spent the rest of the night and next morning trying to keep me from falling asleep. I usually stayed awake; I'd gotten better, it was just the fact that sometimes I would have day-nightmares when I slept in the mornings.

So anyway, I picked him up from school one day and he wasn't really as energetic as he typically was. He was carrying something he had made in art class, but he didn't seem too excited about it. He _was_ smiling, and walking happily towards me as usual. He hugged me, and walked beside me, handing me his artwork. It was this activity where they'd taken a brush and painted with their eyes closed, and he said he thought it was okay, but he'd accidentally painted on the table and Takamine Sensei had made him clean it up after everyone else had gone to music time. So he'd missed most of that, but he said it was a good thing he knew the song already.

"And guess what," he said, clutching the side of my skirt and resting his cheek against my hip as he walked.

"What?" I asked as I shifted the painting to my other hand and held it by my side.

"I helped a lot today. I was done going to the bathroom before everyone else, so I picked all the trash up from around the snack table before we started game. You shoulda _seen_ it, Kame-chan. There were napkins and tissues and scraps of paper everywhere, and there was even a little juice there and I wiped that up too."

"That was _very_ nice of you, Gaara." I rubbed the top of his head, grinning at him. "I'm sure you were a big help to Takamine Sensei. You washed your hands again after that, right?"

He blinked a few times. "Uhm... I think I did. I'm pretty sure I did. Yeah, I'm sure I did! Right after I tossed everything in the trash can."

"That's good. Remember, I taught you that you gotta wash your hands everytime you touch something that's got germs on it."

"Which is _everything_ in the world," he giggled.

"Did you bring your teddy with you today?"

"Nope. I left him at home, he's by the couch."

"Oh yeah, that's right... I almost tripped over him."

When I looked down, Gaara was giving me this horrified look. "Y-You didn't hurt him, did you?"

"Of course I didn't! Silly. I was watching... I moved out of the way just in time. But next time, why don't you leave him in your room? That way he can't get tripped over."

"That's a good idea, Kame-chan." He rubbed his head up against my stomach. "You got a _lot_ of good ideas."

I smiled, hugging him around the waist close to me. It felt good to be appreciated for once, instead of just being told everything you did wasn't good enough. Instead of everyone acting like you couldn't do anything right.

It was good to have a best friend.

* * *

During the night I must have fallen asleep at some point, and it seemed like Gaara decided to just let me sleep. The next thing I knew, I was being shaken awake. I looked up to see Gaara's face, which to me looked just slightly flushed, and he was blinking at me. "Kame-chan, Yashamaru's here. You were asleep so he made breakfast. He's gonna take me to school in a few minutes, but he told me to wake you up because your pancakes are getting cold."

I yawned, sitting up, and noticed I was lying on the floor. I blinked a few times too, and rubbed my eyes. "Did I... fall asleep?"

"Yeah. I was tired too, I didn't feel like waking you up. You looked like you needed to sleep. And don't worry, I stayed awake too."

"That's good. Thanks for letting me sleep." I held out my hand. "Oh, will you help me up, hon?"

"Sure." He walked over and took my arm with both hands, trying to pull me up.

"Ha-ha, I tricked you!" I pulled him down onto the carpet and rolled over, dragging him onto my stomach. We both wrestled for a minute, but eventually I started tickling him. "Mwahaha! I got you, I got you!"

He started shrieking in between his laughter. "K-Kame-chan! Let me go! C-C'mon, that t-tickles! Cut it out!"

I was laughing too, but all of a sudden his laughter died, and it turned into a fit of coughs. Immediately I stopped tickling him and sat up, taking him in my arms. I patted his back, holding him and trying to get the coughing to let up. "Gaara! Are you okay? Did I hurt you?"

"I can't be... hurt, Kame-chan..." He coughed again. "R-Remember?" At last it seemed he'd finally stopped, the coughs tapering off into just him clearing his throat. He gasped in a few deep breaths and collapsed against me, breathing hard. "Kame-chan... can you get me some water? That made my throat all dry."

I was reluctant to let go of him after something like that, but I put him up on the couch to wait for me to get back. Once I got back after Yashamaru helping me get a glass of water, I sat down next to him and handed it to him, watching as he snatched it and started gulping it. "Gaara, are you okay? That cough sounds horrible."

He plunked the glass down on the table, wiping his mouth on his hand and exhaling a sigh of relief. "Yeah, I'm okay." He sniffled lightly, rubbing at his nose. "I'm probably just getting a cold or something. Don't worry 'bout me, Kame-chan - I'll be fine." He took a sudden, quick breath, and then sneezed quietly into his hands. "_Ha'chiu_!"

I blinked twice. In the month I'd been with him, I couldn't remember him ever sneezing. "Bless you. Maybe you _are_ getting sick."

"Yeah, but I'll be okay." He still had his hands over his face. "Uh... I think I need a tissue. I'll be right back!" With that, he hopped off the couch and ran out of the room, his hands still covering his face.

"Wash your hands too!"

"Okay!"

I leaned back and blew out a breath, rubbing my eyes. I'd never taken care of Gaara when he was sick before. He'd never even gotten sick to his stomach or anything; he'd never even told me he'd had so much as a headache. What if he really was sick? Granted, a cold wasn't life-threatening, but still... I'd be worried. Hell, I was worried right now, and this probably wasn't the worst part if he was sick!

I laid down on the couch and closed my eyes. Well, if he _was_ sick, there was only so much I could do for him. I could make soup and tea, wipe him down if there was a fever, let him lie down and watch whatever he wanted on TV (which he usually did anyway), and I could just be there for him. I mean... when you're sick, the thing you want most is for someone to take care of you, right?

If Gaara _was_ sick, he'd definitely want to be taken care of. I knew that about him. And I also knew that I _would_ take care of him.

No matter what, I'd always be there for him. No matter if he was sick, hurt, going through something... no matter how much other people hated him or feared him, or said awful things to him... or to _me_, for being his friend...

I'd _never_ leave him. Never.

* * *

**Like I said, FILLERRRRRR.**

**XD**

**Don't worry, I PROMISE the next chapter will be better. I kinda made the decision to break up the one chapter into two, because if I didn't it would have been too long. So not a lot happened in this chapter, unfortunately. But it DOES leave some questions... such as:**

**Is Gaara sick? Will Kame-chan help him get better? What will she do to help him? Will people quit being total assholes? (Unlikely)**

**And more importantly... why am I asking YOU all these questions? Aren't I the one writing this? *goes to type some more***

**REVIEWS IS LOVE. IF YOU READ REVIEW PLEEEEEEASE... and you get a virtual cookie! :D Everybody loves teh cookies...**

**Hope you liked even though it was FILLERRRRRR! ^^**


	9. Chapter 9

Once Gaara and Yashamaru had left, I got up and wandered around the house. I didn't feel like sleeping. Now I was way too worried about Gaara to do anything but look around for _anything_ I could use to make him feel better when he got home. If we didn't have it, I ought to go out and get it.

I checked in the refrigerator for orange juice, because I remembered one day when Gaara and I had been out after school, looking for a new backpack for him. I'd heard one of the women talking about how you could freeze orange juice and it was good for people who were sick if they sucked on it awhile. Something about the vitamin C was an immune-booster and the cool temperature of the ice was soothing if you ate it like a cough drop.

Once I'd put those in the freezer (in the smaller trays, I didn't want Gaara choking on a huge ice cube), I looked in the cupboards for soup and tea and all that good stuff. Luckily we had a whole box of green tea, which was supposed to be really good for you. And there were also a couple packets of clear miso soup mix, but just the flavoring. That was good actually; I could add the vegetables myself - even I wasn't big enough of a klutz to chop my finger off - but I had no clue how to actually make the base. Which was dumb since I lived _here_, but really, blame it on my mom for never teaching me stuff like this and... well, I guess you can blame me for never asking my aunt about it.

So then I checked again in the refrigerator for vegetables I needed for the soup. I could chop them up now, ahead of time, stash them back in the fridge, and then just make the soup when I got Gaara home. I had the nagging feeling in the back of my mind that he probably wasn't going to school tomorrow, if it did turn out that he was sick.

We did have all the vegetables necessary except for carrots. But Gaara didn't even like carrots, so that was okay. We had celery, onions, leeks, and mushrooms, and that was basically all you needed for a good clear miso soup. Well, and the broth of course...

So I set to work chopping it all up. It had to be pretty fine, because if there were big chunks the sick person would have to chew a _lot_... and when you're sick, your jaw is usually sore and you don't want to chew anything. I mean, why the hell do you think you eat soup in the first place? It's something you _really_ don't have to... eat! It's more like a drink than a food, really. Just goes down without a lot of chewing. You could suck it with a straw if you really wanted.

Finally I got all the vegetables chopped up really thin and small, so that they'd slide down easy too if they were in soup. They'd just go down with the broth - no chewing required! "I oughta open a soup shop when I get older," I laughed as I headed back into the living room after putting the veggies back in the refrigerator. "I'd be good with any kind of food. Huh, I wonder how soup and cupcakes would go together good? Maybe if you froze the soup into like an ice cream, or mixed it with plain vanilla frosting or... ah. Whatever. My brain hurts now. I'll try it later. Not now."

I had three hours, and I was going to make the most of it. I flopped down on the couch and I was out like a light within probably five minutes.

* * *

I must have been extremely tired, because when I went to go wait for Gaara, I fell asleep outside the classroom. Yeah, I know, I'm lame beyond lame. Yup, that was me.

Even though I did fall asleep, I half-expected to be woken up by Gaara when he tackled me in a flying hug, asking how come I hadn't come in to get him today. But no, I was shaken awake quite rudely by Takamine Sensei. "Kame, get up. Go get the demon."

I looked up, blinking at her. Like most people's brains, mine didn't process things very quickly after being woken up. "Uhm... where's Gaara? He go out to the playground 'er somethin'?" It was probable that I sounded like I was drunk off my ass, but I wasn't worried about that so much. My main concern was the same as always: Gaara.

She huffed, pulling me off the floor with one hand and using the other to open the door. "Everyone else is long gone, Kame. I would like you to remove the monster from the room so I can lock up and leave. Unlike you, I have places to be."

My mind was boggled at the fact that this woman had a social life, but I walked into the room anyway. Why hadn't Gaara come to me? "Where is he?"

"In the library section." She pointed to the shelves of books where I'd found him the first day. "He's been there since snack, and I sure wasn't going to force him to get on the carpet with the rest of us. I still had marks on my wrist from where he sunk his teeth into me this morning."

"He bit you?" I was mildly shocked to hear that. Ever since the first night I'd been with him, Gaara had never hurt anyone on purpose that I'd seen. That wasn't like him.

"He didn't break the skin, but I'm never telling him he has to clean up his mess again."

"I-I'm sure he didn't mean it, Takamine Sensei." I knelt down to Gaara's curled-up form, and I could see he was shivering. I touched his back, and his skin was hot - I could feel the heat through his shirt. "Poor thing, you're shaking like a leaf." I carefully placed my other hand under his cheek, which was on the carpet, and turned him over to face me. "Gaara, honey?"

I could see why he hadn't wanted to get up. He looked worse than this morning, his face all pink and eyes a little bloodshot, the rings around them looking even darker than normal. He ws holding a tissue over the lower half of his face, sniffling. He blinked up at me, and seemed to smile beneath his tissue. "K-Kame-chan."

"Oh, Gaara. I'm so sorry, you told me you were sick..." I gently pulled him up off the carpet, drawing him close to me. "I knew I should have kept you home."

Before he could even speak, he let out a string of coughs, identical to those that morning. "I-I told you I was fine though. It's my fault 'cause I don't think I'm fine anymore."

I wasn't quite sure what I could say to that. It was _not_ his fault; it was mine for not making him stay home. I pushed myself off the floor, standing up and hiking him over my shoulder. "Are you comfortable, hon?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, let's go home." I rubbed his back softly, and walked to the door. I glanced back at Takamine Sensei. "I-I think it's safe to say that he's not going to be here tomorrow, so I won't bother calling in."

"Fine," was the short answer I got as she was gathering her purse and coat.

I shook my head and left with Gaara. _People_.

* * *

Once we got back to the house, I made Gaara lie down on the couch, covering him up with a blanket. "Don't worry," I told him, kissing his forehead and running my hand through his hair. "I'll take care of you."

I gave him the remote and a box of tissues, then went to the kitchen to get the soup and everything. By the time I got back carrying a cute little tray, he'd gone through half the box - mostly because of his coughing though. I felt my heart hurting, because his cough sounded so horrible, but there wasn't anything I could do except make him comfortable while he got better.

I sat with him while he ate, but I ended up having to help feed him. He would start eating, but then another fit of coughing would come on and he'd just about drop the spoon. As I fed him, I resolved to myself that if his cough didn't let up or lessen a little before eight, I was going to call Yashamaru. He was a medic, wasn't he? He'd know what to do... hopefully. After all, even if he was a medic, he was a still a medic _ninja_. He specialized in treating wounds, not sicknesses. I prayed I wouldn't even have to call him, but the way things were going...

After he finished most of the soup, I forced half of the tea down him. It wouldn't help his throat unless he drank it, which was what I told him as I held the mug to his lips. Once he'd done that, I set the cup aside and made him try one of the orange juice ice cubes. He said it tasted good, but it concerned me that it seemed to make the cough worse. He did finish it, but I made it a point not to give him anymore.

It was getting dangerously close to eight, and while his cough wasn't getting any worse except for the ice cube thing, it certainly wasn't getting any better. He still sounded like it was hurting him just to breathe, and every set of coughs made him bend at the waist.

I sighed, glancing at the TV where the ending credits of _Mitachi-Chan the Brave_ were playing, with a song I realized as "Don't Wanna Be" by Geisha Doll. I sang along softly, my hand resting on Gaara's leg and trying to console him. "_Don't wanna be, don't wanna be, I don't wanna be hurt and all alone... I don't wanna be, I don't wanna be, don't wanna be hanging off the edge... don't wanna be, don't wanna be, I don't wanna be less than honesty... and I don't wanna be, I don't wanna be, don't wanna be nothin' if you're not my baby... never gonna be, never gonna be, never gonna be anyone but me_..."

"Your voice is pretty, Kame-chan," Gaara rasped, reaching for another tissue. "You're the best singer ever."

"Aw, I'm not that good."

"Are too. _Ha'chiu_!" He buried his face in the tissue and I heard him blow his nose "Unh... th-that one actually hurt a little."

"Bless you."

"Thanks, Kame-chan."

I let out a sigh, shooting a glance to the clock. It was 7:59. "You're _still_ not feeling any better, Gaara?"

He sniffled, wiping his nose. "Nope." He tossed the tissue into the bag I'd brought in, and then crawled into my lap, shivering even worse than before.

"I'm really sorry, honey." I put my hand palm-down on his forehead, and it hadn't gotten any cooler. "You're still warm."

"Mmmf." He reached up and put both of his hands over mine on his forehead. "Can you keep your hand there, Kame-chan? It feels good."

"Okay, I will. But first..." I slid my hand out from under his and reached over to the coffee table, grabbing the thermometer I'd laid there earlier. "I want you to open your mouth so I can take your temperature."

He growled a little bit, but because of his throat it sounded more like a whine. "Do I... _hafta_?"

"Yes, you _hafta_." I put the termometer between his lips. "Now keep it under your tongue."

After a few minutes, the thermometer beeped and I took it out. "Alright, let's see the damage."

My eyes nearly bugged out of my head. "Oh my God, 102.3? ... That's a pretty high fever..." I took a breath, trying to think of what to do. I leaned over and placed my hand on top of his chest. "Gaara, breathe in for me."

I may not have been the smartest person when it came to medical stuff, but I knew a little. And the fact that Gaara was struggling just to fill up his lungs hit the worry button.

I bit my lip, debating in my mind between the phone and the door. "I wonder... should I call Yashamaru... or just take you to the hospital...?"

"_Ha'chuu_!"

"Bless you," I said absently, still staring at the thermometer that had _better_ be lying to me.

He sniffled again, reaching for yet another tissue. "Let's just call Yashamaru. I _don't_ like doctors, Kame-chan."

"Well... okay, I'll call him." I got up, rubbing the top of his head. "But if whatever he says doesn't work, I'm taking you to the doctor, whether you like it or not. I'll be right back."

I went to the kitchen and picked up the phone, dialing the number Yashamaru had left me. He said that mostly all he did during his later shift was paperwork, so I could call him if I had any questions.

"Hello?"

"Hey Yasha?" I swallowed, not really willing to admit that I wasn't able to do my job at the moment. I should have known what I was supposed to do for him. "Sorry to call you so late, but Gaara's sick and I don't know what to do."

"Well, what's his temperature?" Yashamaru asked tiredly, the phone adding in a static in his voice.

"It's 102... I mean, I know it can get that way with a cold... but I'm really worried, Yasha."

"Why? Is he throwing up or anything?"

"No..." I peeked into the living room, where Gaara had begun another coughing fit, hands over his mouth. My heart hurt again. "But he's been coughing a lot, and it's this dry, awful-sounding cough. And when I put my hand on his chest, I could tell he wasn't getting as much air as he should. Yasha, it's getting really hard for him to breathe."

As I was listening to Yashamaru's advice, I was also keeping an ear on Gaara. He was sniffling more, and still had a tissue. He bent down to grab his teddy bear from the floor where it was. "No, I don't think anybody likes being sick, Teddy," he sighed, hugging the stuffed animal close to him. "But I don't think there's a lot I can do, 'cept listen to Kame-chan."

I turned back into the kitchen as Yashamaru finished talking. "Did you get that, Kame?"

"Yeah, I did. Emergency room, right?"

"Yeah. If he's coughing that bad he's probably got some kind of infection. Call me and tell me as soon as you've got a diagnosis, I suppose."

"Okay. Thanks, bye." I hung the phone up. "_Gaara_! Yasha says to take you to the hospital. Grab your bear, get your shoes on, and let's go, hon."

I was already walking in when Gaara was talking to his teddy bear. I heard him whispering, "Teddy... if we're real quiet, we can run..."

* * *

**AHAHAHA OMG isn't Gaara just ADORAFYING. Poor baby, he ish sick! But it looks like it's more than just a cold... WHAT COULD IT BE.**

**Wait why am I asking you? You guys have no idea... XD I'm the one writing the cliffies here...**

**And also, you guys are gonna think I'm SUCH a nerd and have no life (oh wait you already know that): I actually drew a few comics about this, based on this particular scene. Why? ... Because. I HAVE NO LIFE. :D Thanks come again. If anybody wants to see them let me know.**

**As always remember this: REVIEWS BE LOVE. They are also the source upon which my existence feeds, so if you read please review!**

**LOVE TO Y'ALL. ^^**


	10. Chapter 10

**WOW. First of all, it's been a few days. And second... HOLY JERK MUFFINS, I THINK THIS IS THE LONGEST CHAPTER EVER. Ahem. Sorry about my long-explaining-all-the-blasted-details-ness in this chapter... but I still hope you like it 'cause I did work hard on it! XD**

* * *

At last we got to the hospital. I had carried Gaara, and walked there, since I didn't dare run for fear of making his condition worse. What if I _did_ run, and it made him cough, or throw up? I was already beside myself with worry; I didn't know how much more I could take without just breaking down.

I could hear him sniffling and whimpering as I carried him, and my heart hadn't stopped hurting. But there wasn't anything I could do at the moment to help him. So I just rubbed his back and hummed to him, silently reassuring him that everything would be alright.

Once we got there, I carefully sat him down in a chair. I leaned down, lightly brushing his cheek with two fingers. "You stay here, honey. I'm gonna go check us in." I held up his teddy bear and made it kiss his cheek, then placed it in his lap. "I'll be right back."

He hugged the toy to his chest, nodding. "Kay," he croaked before letting out a string of coughs.

"Alright." I ruffled his hair one last time and headed to the front desk slash window thing. We were the only ones here, and apparently that went for the staff as well, because there wasn't anybody behind the desk. I sighed, but it turned out as more of a growl. I leaned slightly in, looking for anyone. "Hello?" I called, hoping somebody would hear me. "I've got a sick kid and we could really use a doctor!"

I groaned and turned around. "Fine! We'll be waiting if anyone wants to send us to the examination place!"

I walked back to Gaara, sat down, and picked up a magazine. "I guess it's going to be a while, Gaara. Sorry."

It was nine o'clock, and still nobody had called us back yet. I'd been reading the same _Seventeen_ magazine for nearly an hour, while poor Gaara had just sat there bored, sniffling and coughing and being miserable at best.

"_Ha'chiu_!"

"Bless you." I looked at the clock again. "I wonder when they're going to get us in. It's been a while."

I heard him whimper and I glanced down at him. He still looked so awful, hugging his teddy. He was talking to the stuffed toy again, too. "Yeah, I didn't want to come to the doctor either, Teddy. But if Kame-chan thinks it'll help make me better, then I trust her."

I couldn't take it anymore. I had to get this kid some help. I stood up, putting my magazine down. "Gaara? I'm gonna go see what's taking so long. You stay here, okay? And don't go anywhere without telling me."

"Okay, Kame-chan. I know you can make them hurry."

I walked up to the desk again. This time, there was a lady behind it. She had brown hair like mine, but hers was a lot shorter and her eyes were green instead. I tapped on the desk. "Excuse me? I've been waiting for almost an hour. What's the deal?"

She didn't even look up at me. "We know you've been here."

Anger rose in my chest as I realized she just didn't care that we were waiting for medical attention. "So then why the hell haven't you called us?"

"You're going to have to go somewhere else. I've discussed it with my superiors, and none of us want that demon here. None of the doctors want to look at him, and we're certainly not going to admit him. The other patients would be scared out of their wits, and for that matter so would the rest of us."

My hands twitched, and I slammed my palms down on the counter, glaring at the woman. "Excuse me? There's a child here who obviously needs medical treatment and you're refusing to even examine him because of that fucking demon inside him?"

When I didn't get an answer, I knew that was exactly what she was insinuating. I huffed and turned away. "Fine! We don't need this place anyway! I'll just take him to my medic friend!"

As I was picking Gaara up, teddy bear and all, I heard her yell after me: "I doubt any medic will want to examine that thing! I heard what he did to that teacher at the kindergarten! He ought to be locked up, if you ask me!"

"_Well nobody asked you_!" I screamed, storming out. "And if you ask me, _you_ need a good kick in the ass!"

I began walking briskly back home, hugging Gaara even tighter than before. All I wanted to do was protect him from people like that, people who couldn't see beyond the stories they'd heard. "I swear," I muttered, stomping along the dirt road, "if I ever see that bitch again, I'll punch her _so_ hard in the mouth, it'll wake up her dentist."

I heard Gaara sniffling again, but this time I could tell it wasn't because his nose was running. He was crying now. "I-I'm sorry, K-Kame-chan," he sobbed, his face burying even deeper into my bare shoulder. "Y-You're always yelling at people because of me. P-Please don't hate me, Kame-chan, please..."

"Gaara, you don't have any reason to be sorry," I assured him. "And haven't we gone over this? I'll never hate you. None of this is _your_ fault, and it's not _my_ fault. You know, I blame the whole damn village. If they weren't bent towards war, they wouldn't have had Shukaku sealed in you. Come on, I'm gonna call Yasha and tell him what happened."

* * *

Once I got Gaara back to the house, lying on the couch again, I decided to just sit down and use my phone to call Yashamaru this time. I had to be by Gaara, in case he needed me. So I dialed Yashamaru's number, and waited.

"Hello, Kame."

"You knew it was me?"

"Caller ID. Do you have a diagnosis and medicine?"

"Hell no." I rubbed Gaara's hair, as he was leaning against me. "Do you know what the hospital did, Yasha? They turned us away because of who he is. I don't know what to do now. There aren't any other hospitals. I was thinking that... maybe... we could come see you."

I heard him sigh on the other end. "Kame, you know how much paperwork I'm behind on? I'm just barely starting to catch up." Another sigh, but a more resigned one this time. "But... if there are no other options, I guess... bring him down. Technically I'll still be doing my job."

I let myself smile slightly. _Finally_. "Thanks _so_ much, Yasha. We'll be there soon!"

"Alright. Bye."

"See ya." I shut my phone and slid it into my pocket. "C'mon, Gaara. We're going to see Yasha."

* * *

When we got to Yashamaru's office, he was shuffling through a mountain of papers. Yikes, I'd hate to have _his_ job. I put Gaara down, and the first thing he did was run over to give Yashamaru a give. "Yashamaru!"

Why, hello again, jealousy.

"So can you look at him?" I asked, barely managing to pry him off of Yashamaru.

"Yes, let's get started." He stood up, walked over to what looked like an examination table, and tapped it. "Come here, Gaara. I need you to get up on this table so I can see what's wrong with you."

"Okay, I'm coming." He went over, but then looked expectantly back at me, as he wasn't sure how to get up - jumping would probably only make him cough after all, and it didn't seem he had the energy to climb up on the chair and get up. "Kame-chan?"

"Comin'." I came over and lifted him up onto the table. "Alright, Yasha, start examining."

"I have to get my gloves on." Was it just me, or did he sound _really_ pissed off? Maybe he was just tired. Working eighteen hours a day could do that to a person. He put his gloves on and then took out his stethoscope. "Okay, Gaara, I have to put this on your back, down your shirt. It's going to feel cold, but you can hold Kame's hand, okay?"

"Kay." He was still clutching his teddy bear with one arm, but he instantly grabbed my hand with his free fingers. "K-Kame-chan, can I squeeze your hand if I need you?"

"Squeeze as hard as you want to. I'm pretty sure it won't hurt me." I caressed the back of his hand with my thumb. "Don't worry, it'll be okay."

"Okay. I-I think I'm ready, Yashamaru."

"Alright, here I go." Yashamaru slipped the metal part of the stethoscope down Gaara's shirt, pressing against his back. I saw Gaara shiver, and his grip on my hand tightened slightly. "I know it's cold, but I'm listening to your lungs and your heart. I have to do this to find out what you're sick with, and I'll be done in a few seconds here."

"Kay." I could almost hear Gaara's teeth chattering, but he wasn't complaining. He'd obviously decided that to grin and bear it would be easier than throwing a fit.

I watched as Yashamaru moved the stethoscope around on Gaara's back, listening for anything abnormal. Everytime he moved it, Gaara would jump at the cold on a new spot, and a small squeeze would be issued to my hand. I didn't mind, though - he really wasn't strong enough to hurt it that bad.

At last Yashamaru leaned back, taking the metal part out of Gaara's shirt and the rest out of his ears. He put it on a desk and looked at Gaara for a minute. "Hmm... I think I know what the problem is, but..." He looked up at me, as Gaara was busy hugging his bear now. "Kame, because these symptoms can indicate any number of illnesses, I do need to perform a test for streptococcus."

I just looked at him blankly. "English?"

"Actually, it's Latin."

My blank stare continued.

He sighed harshly, opening a drawer where I saw tongue depressors and medical swabs. "It's a very contagious bacteria that causes strep throat. It's most common in children around Gaara's age, as well as teenagers. I need to do this test because first of all, it infects people close to your age as well, and we wouldn't want you getting sick too. And second of all, it can't be treated without antibiotics. If I it _is_ strep and we don't do anything, he's just going to get worse." He pulled out a depressor and a swab, giving them to me. "I'm going to go warm up the microscope so I can look at the results quickly. You prep him for what I'm going to do."

As he left, I realized exactly what it was. This was the test where they stuck a stick down your throat to get a sample, and whenever they did it to me, it would almost make me vomit. I winced, looking at the wrapped depressor and swab. _Damn_.

I walked over to Gaara and bent down a little. "Gaara, honey?"

He looked up at me. "Yeah, Kame-chan?"

"Okay. Yasha's going to have to do a little test on you, okay?"

He nodded. "Uh-huh."

"It's called a strep test. All he's going to do is put this on your tongue to hold it out of the way..." I held up the depressor. "And if you open your mouth wide enough, he might not even have to do that. And then he's just going to stick this in your throat..." I held up the swab. "All it is, it's just like a big Q-tip. See? It's not that bad. It'll be in and out before you know it. It's probably going to make you cough a little, and it _is_ going to be a little uncomfortable, but..."

At that he started tearing up. "B-But Kame-chan... I-I don't know if..."

"Gaara!" Fed up with everything that was happening, I put the things down on the table and grabbed both of his arms. Not hard enough to hurt him, but just hard enough to get my point across. "We are _not_ doing this just to be mean to you. We're doing this because we need to find out what's making you sick! If it's something that isn't going to get better without medicine, you need the medicine. If you don't let us do this, then you're just going to feel worse. We're doing this because we care about you. Do you understand that?"

He nodded, running an arm across his eyes and letting out a tiny cough before sniffling. "I-I know, Kame-chan. C-Can I still hold your hand?"

"Of course you can. And when you're all better, I promise you can have all the cookies you want. Okay?"

"O-Okay."

"Are you ready?"

"I th-think so."

"Okay, Yasha's coming." I held his hand tightly as Yashamaru prepared to administer the test.

Yashamaru raised the tongue depressor. "Alright, Gaara, say 'ahh' and open your mouth as wide as you can."

"Ahhhh."

"Good. I don't think we're going to even need this." He set the depressor aside and peeled open the wrapping on the swab.

"Yasha," I commented, "why don't we count down from three? Gaara's a little nervous, I think it would help that he knows when it's coming."

"Okay, you can do that."

"Okay, you do it on one." I looked down at Gaara. "Three..." At Yashamaru. "Two..." I made sure my grip was tight and turned my attention away from them. "One!"

The next thing I heard was Gaara gagging as Yashamaru put the swab down his throat and collected a sample. After that, he screamed once, then began coughing and crying.

I looked back, and saw Gaara trying to bawl his eyes out in between coughs. Yashamaru was heading off with the sample. "I'll be back in five minutes!"

I immediately went to comfort Gaara. I picked him up from the table and held him close to me, rubbing his back. "It's okay, Gaara. It's okay," I shushed, patting his back with all the caution of a mother. "You did good! You did better than I ever did!" I hugged him as tight as I could without hurting him, placing a gentle kiss on his neck and then burying my face in his hair. "I am _so_ proud of you. You did such a good job."

His coughing settled down after a few minutes, but he was still sobbing. He held onto me as tight as I did to him. "M-My throat hurts now, Kame-chan," he wailed, throwing his face into my shoulder.

"I know, babe. It will for a little bit. It's okay. It'll all be okay." He didn't really know it, but I was talking about more than his being sick. I was hoping that, by saying it out loud, everything would just... be alright. Gaara would have a normal childhood from now on and nobody would hate him. I knew it didn't work that way, but I still had some kind of childish hope in me.

Finally Yashamaru came back. "It's not strep. I saw nothing unusual in the culture. So, because of what I heard while I was examining him, I suspect he has a mycoplasma..." He trailed off as he realized I was giving him that blank stare again. "Um... atypical pneumonia?"

Black stare still. "I only recognize that second word there, hon."

"For goodness's sake!" He picked up a pen and paper. "You probably know it as walking pneumonia. You know how some cases of pneumonia are so severe that the patient has to be hospitalized or put on bedrest?"

"Yeah, that much. And walking pneumonia... means he's allowed to go to school?"

"Well, he may be able to move around, but he's still pretty contagious. I wouldn't recommend it until he's finished with this medicine. I'm writing you a prescription." He handed me the paper he'd just written on. "Go fill it. It's for a generic brand of clarithromycin, a macolyde medication that should clear up the infection. I understand Kazekage-sama gives you pay weekly?"

"Yup."

"Good. Have any on you?"

"Um... yeah, why?"

"Well, you're going to have to pay for the prescription. Should be about... ah... around a thousand yen, maybe a little more."

"Alright. Is it an oral medicine?"

"Yes, but you'll have to crush up the pills in applesauce or something - Gaara isn't able to swallow them yet. Believe me, I tried once. All he did was spit them out."

"How long is the course of treatment?"

"About two weeks."

"He's going to miss two weeks of school?"

Yashamaru shrugged, walking back over to his paperwork. "He missed a week once and he managed to catch up. I'm sure he'll be fine. I suggest you fill the prescription, head home, and start taking care of him so he's better as soon as possible. You should notice an improvement in a couple of days. Until he starts feeling a little better, keep him comfortable. Nothing but soup for the first few days, but then once he feels better he can eat normally, but nothing outrageous."

"Alright. Thanks a lot..." I breathed out a sigh of relief, happy that I finally knew what I was dealing with. "I know _I_ feel better now!" I placed Gaara on the floor. "Gaara, do you want to say thank you?"

"Of course!" He ran over and hugged Yashamaru again, tighter this time and for longer. "Thank you, Yashamaru! Thank you for making me better!"

I felt my fists clench at my sides. Hey, what? I was still working on not being so jealous when Gaara did stuff like that to Yashamaru. He did it to me too, and besides... I should be _encouraging_ Gaara to have more friends and act like that with other people. I couldn't just keep him to myself.

He ran back to me and held his arms up, curling his fingers and uncurling them at me. "Kame-chan, up!"

I snorted and rolled my eyes, grinning. "Gaara, you're not that much of a baby. Stop talking like that."

"Okay. Can you carry me, Kame-chan?"

"Yeah." I picked him up again, laying his head over my shoulder. "Bye, Yasha! I'll see you tomorrow, beautiful!"

He sighed at my word choice, but just shook his head. "See you later."

I walked out and glanced at the prescription, barely able to see it in the moonlight. "Ah. So Gaara, when I put your pills in applesauce, are you going to whine, or are you going to eat it like a big boy?"

He nodded against me. "I'm gonna eat it, 'cause I know it'll make me better."

I smiled, feeling my arms tighten protectively around me. "That's my good boy. That's my Gaara."

* * *

**Woot woot! And that basically finishes off the Gaara sick arc, I guess... XD**

**I have the pics of Kame and Gaara but I have to scan some of them, and I'll upload the other ones to deviant Art by the next chapter and give the links, k?**

**Reviews are love! If you read, please review!**


	11. Chapter 11

I was by Gaara's side for the entire two weeks while he recovered from that pneumonia. He may have been _able_ to walk, but by no means did that fool me into thinking he _wanted_ to. He all but refused to move, dropping down on the couch as soon as we'd returned home with his medicine. He stayed there on a little makeshift bed for a fair amount of the two weeks. Towards the end of the second week, he began feeling better and got up a few times - well, a few more than just me forcing him to get up and use the bathroom every once in a while. By Thursday of the second week, he was his old self. He was running around, and his appetite was back. I knew that because he asked me that since I had said he could have as many cookies as he wanted, if "a bajillion" was too many.

... Yeah I know, what a cutie.

I sent him back to school on Friday, and he seemed fine when he got home. Except for the fact that his class had started on reading skills while he was gone for two weeks, and now he had to practice. But I didn't think it'd be too hard, because he could already read a lot of words. He could read his teacher's name, for example; my name, his own name, Yashamaru's, and he had read through a short book to me once. Well, he'd actually written it himself, and it _was_ only four pages... and most of it was drawings... but still! He was doing pretty good for a six-year-old.

SO. Anyway, another week went by without any events. Nothing bad, nothing extraordinary except for the occasional nasty look or word from Takamine Sensei. Well, the villagers gave us _looks_, but nobody really actually spoke to us aside from Takamine Sensei.

Then came Friday of the week after he had recovered, and I had just picked up Gaara from kindergarten. He'd come out happy-go-lucky as usual, showing me some writing practice he'd done where he'd written my name and Yashamaru's. His cursive had improved, and he was extra cheerful because it was the last day of school this week.

Takamine Sensei and I regarded each other with a cool exchange of our eyes, and I led Gaara out of the building while holding his hand. I didn't want him to be in a place full of people who didn't like him anymore than he had to.

We walked down the streets, Gaara humming quietly. Earlier last night, I'd promised him ice cream if he could write his teacher's full name, Takamine Ayasunako Sensei, right. He was _one_ letter off, spelling her last name as _Ayisunako_, but I gently corrected him and decided to let him have the ice cream anyway. It was a rare thing.

So there we were, walking down the street. I was heading straight to the ice cream shop, while Gaara... well, he sorta had other plans.

"Whoa! Cool! Kame-chan, look!" And he ran over to the toy store, looking at the window.

I rolled my eyes. "For heaven's sakes, Gaara. If your teddy bear hears about this, he's going to feel _so_ unloved..."

And so I began walking back toward where he was to drag him away from the window. I didn't run like I could have, I just walked. What harm could a six-year-old do at the window of a toy store? He hadn't even gone inside.

As I got closer, I could see two men standing in front of Gaara and talking to him. I got even closer, and I realized they weren't talking; they were yelling. "... and I don't even know why Kazekage-sama keeps you around!" one of them shouted.

"Yeah, you're useless! All you do is kill people!" The second guy was holding an empty beer bottle, and he raised it, quite prepared to hurl it at Gaara.

"Damn it!" I ran over as fast as I could, using myself as a shield in front of Gaara and simultaneously grabbing the guy's hand so he couldn't do anything. "You must be _hella_ dumb if you think I'm gonna let you do that, you drunk bastard!"

He just looked at me for a minute, before his scowl deepend. "Hey, let go of me, fatass!"

That was it. I just flew into a rampage. I absolutely _hated_ being called anything that referred to my weight. The last time somebody called me fat, I got put in out-of-school suspension for breaking a couple of this one guy's ribs. "_Who you callin' fatass, you old fart_?" I screamed, yanking the bottle from his grasp and throwing it to the ground so it broke. "I'll kick _your_ fat ass up and down this damn street! Hell be damned if I'll let you sit there, call me names, and terrorize my kid!" With that, I turned around, picked Gaara up, tossed him right over my shoulder, probably scaring the poor boy half to death since I was only holding him by his legs, and stomped off.

Once we got to the ice-cream shop, I just stood there, trying to calm myself down. I rarely ever let someone off that easy when they called me fat, and especially when they were harassing Gaara besides that. It was the same feeling I got when my aunt had attacked him; that "I-wanna-kill-someone-but-do-I-really-wanna-be-that-kind-of-person" feeling.

It was midway through my mantra of _Those who matter don't mind, those who mind don't matter_ when Gaara piped up. "K-Kame-chan," he squeaked, pulling at the back of my shirt. "I-I'm not your kid, a-and I think all the blood's going to my head. Getting kinda hard for me to - whoa!"

That "whoa" was because I'd lost my grip on his legs. My hands were sweaty from the encounter with those dumbasses back there, and I hadn't noticed my grasp was slipping... until he actually fell.

I spun around and saw that a pillow of sand had instantly rushed to protect him, but he was still rubbing his head in confusion. He blinked up at me and rocked his head from side to side. "... Uh... am I supposed to say 'ow', Kame-chan?"

"Oh God!" I hurried to my knees, helping him up. "I am so sorry, Gaara! Are you okay?"

"Unh." He accepted my hand and stood up, brushing his pants off. "Like we both said, I can't be hurt, really." He pointed to the left side of his chest, making a motion like his heart was beating really fast. "But over here it felt kinda funny when I started falling. Like... you know how your stomach gets butterflies when you're nervous? I had that in my tummy, but it was here too."

"Yeah." I breathed a sigh of relief that his sand shield thing - whatever the hell it was, I wasn't going to ask around, it protected him and that was good enough for me - hadn't faltered. "Your heart was nervous. So was mine, ha!"

He wrapped his arms around me and buried his face in my stomach, leaving a small kiss there. "I'm sorry I made your heart get butterflies, Kame-chan. Is it all better now?"

"Yeah. You?"

"Uh-huh."

"Good, I'm glad." I put a hand on top of his head and tousled his hair.

All of a sudden he ran inside the store. "Come on, Kame-chan! You promised ice cream, and I want _chocolate_!"

"Pfft." I followed him less enthusiastically, thinking mostly about how this was going to affect my weight... _again_. I knew I wasn't as attractive as other girls, but with a friend like Gaara it was easy to forget and not worry about how much I was eating or what I was eating. It didn't help that certain old coots were calling me fatass, though. I _wish_ I coulda kicked their cans, but that probably wouldn't have been very good for Gaara's rep around town... and if _that_ didn't improve, his confidence would stay low. Couldn't let that happen. "You better slow down, Gaara," I commented, pulling out my wallet. "_I'm_ the one who has money. All you have is paper you've drawn yen signs on. In crayon."

"You said they were pretty!"

"They are. I just really don't think you're going to be getting anything with them."

I looked down at him to see that he had the pieces of colorfully drawn on paper in his hand, as he blinked up at me. He looked from me to the papers, then back at me, and then stuffed them back in his pocket. "Yeah, I guess."

Coulda smacked myself. "You brought them _with_ you? Here?"

"Well, I was thinking what would happen if we didn't have enough money and _you_ couldn't get any ice cream. I want you to be able to have it too."

I let out a short, soft laugh as I pulled him toward me in a one-armed kiddie hug. "Don't worry, honey. I'm sure I have enough. I don't need that much ice cream anyway."

"So you don't need my money?"

"Nope, I think we're good."

"Kay. I'm gonna go save a table for us, kay?"

"Okay."

He hurried off to a table near a window for us, and immediately sat down, pulling out his "money" and a crayon and beginning to draw some more.

I shook my head and got in line.

Once I got up in the front of the line, I rolled my eyes at the disgusted look the guy gave me. Apparently, I wasn't held in too high regard here either, because I was associated with Gaara. Well, damn, if being friends with Gaara made me a demon too, then boy, was I ruling hell now.

I got our ice cream and headed back to the table, deciding to ignore the way people were looking at me. I sat down, handing Gaara his cone and slowly starting to eat from my bowl with the little spoon. "So whatcha been doing, Gaara?"

"Look." He held up one of his made-up currency. "I changed it from 4000 yen to 40000. Now it's worth a lot more!"

"I'll say." I took another bite.

Gaara put his papers aside and took one large chomp out of the ice cream, not even licking it or anything. Nope, just trying to eat it like a normal food item.

"Gaara!" I reached over, pulling the cone away from his mouth. "Would you not eat it so fast? Making me nervous, you're gonna get a brain freeze."

"Eep." The effects of the coldness were already getting to him, as he'd brought one hand up to his head. "Ow! Ow! _Ow_! My head!"

"Yup, brain freeze."

"Mmnh." He rubbed his head. "What makes that happen, Kame-chan?"

I giggled, spooning some more ice cream into my mouth. "Hell if I know. I didn't finish school, remember?"

He looked at me for a minute, all but forgetting his ice cream, and then smiled. "Hey Kame-chan, have you ever noticed how pretty you are?" He said this like it was the most obvious thing in the world, like I should have known.

I made another "pfft" noise. "I'm not that pretty."

"You are too. I like your hair, and your eyes."

"Please, Gaara. They might be nice, but those are the only good things about me."

"I like your smile too! I can feel this place..." He placed his free hand over his heart. "This place gets really happy when you smile."

Boy, did that make me smile.

"See, there it is! Right here, right..." His hand clutched onto his shirt where it already was. "Right here is happy again."

I pushed my ice cream bowl away from me, sighing lightly. "Okay, there are a few good things about me. So what? Those guys were right. I'm fat, maybe I should try not eating so much..." I sighed again, setting my cheek on my slightly-curled fist. "I should probably go on a diet or something..."

"Kame-chan, _no_!" He looked very seriously at me, his invisible eyebrows knitted together. "No. You can't listen to them. Just like you tell me all the time, if they don't care then it doesn't matter what they say. I don't want you to ever change _anything_ about you, Kame-chan." He reached over with the hand that had been on his heart, and pulled my fist down so that his little palm was on top of mine. "I like you just the way you are. I don't want you to change. If you change, then... then you won't be Kame-chan anymore. You won't be you."

I closed my eyes halfway, and I could feel a smile spreading over my lips. Finally somebody who didn't care what I looked like, who wanted me to stay the way I was. Someone who didn't think I needed to be better, or I needed to change anything about myself. I could see it as I looked in his eyes, that Gaara thought I was pretty no matter what.

I leaned back, gently curling my fingers around his. "Yeah, I guess you're right. Eating healthy is expensive anyway. And it's a lot more boring. This is fine... it _doesn't_ matter that much, does it?"

He smiled at me, bringing my hand over to his side and placing my palm against his cheek, rubbing it slowly up and down. "Yashamaru says that you hafta figure out what's important in life. And he says that stuff like appa... um, appre..."

"Appearance?" I finished.

"Yeah, appearance. He says stuff like appearance and power and all that... it doesn't matter too much. There's stuff that matters more." He grinned against my hand, and a light blush dusted across his cheeks as he pressed his lips airily on my fingers. "Like how good friends you and me are. That matters _way_ more than what you look like, 'specially when you're pretty anyhow."

"Thanks, Gaara." I drew my hand away and tapped his nose with one finger, just now realizing that I rarely thanked anybody. "You don't have any idea how much I needed to hear that."

He shrugged, taking another lick off his ice cream cone. "Yashamaru always says to tell the truth. That's all I did."

* * *

**G'awwwwww. Now the REAL action will come next chapter. I can't tell you what it is, but I CAN tell you that it's not canon... yet...**

**XD REVIEWS ARE LOVE THEY KEEP ME GOING. THEY MAKE ME HAPPY AND WHEN I'M HAPPY I WRITE. ... SO if you wants more, reviews!**

**Love everybodyyyy! ^^**


	12. Chapter 12

**OK sooooo... I lied. XD There is some action in this chap, but not what I was aiming for. And it was getting kind of lengthy. SOOOOOO... yeah. MORE action next chapter! Enjoy!**

* * *

Gaara and I stayed at the ice cream shop for a while, savoring our ice cream as much as we could. Since it was hard to keep cold in Suna, it was a little more expensive than most things. And since we couldn't get it too often, we wanted to enjoy it for as long as possible. We were there maybe an hour.

We walked down the street hand-in hand, swinging our arms together. We were almost home when all of a sudden, something on a building caught Gaara's eye. "Hey, Kame-chan! Look!" He ran over to the building, dragging me along with him.

When we got there, I saw it was a bright, neon pink flyer. It announced a talent competition, two weeks from yesterday. All kinds of talents were welcome, but they asked that there be no acts involving fire, and also puppet masters were requested to please refrain from scaring the living shit out of anybody with their dolls.

Gaara pointed up at it. "You'd be good at that, Kame-chan! You could sing. I bet you'd win the whole thing and get an _awesome_ trophy."

I looked down at him wide-eyed. "You can read all that?"

He scratched his cheek, grinning up at me. "I'm getting better!"

"Awesomesauce." I poked the flyer and tilted my head. "You really think I should enter?"

"Yeah! You'd blow everybody away. You should sing that one song, that one by Yuna Ito."

"Oh, I think I know which one you're talking about. Huh." I nodded, taking out my cell and entering the number for the registration people into it. "I'll definitely try. You're gonna watch, right?"

"Of course I will!" He hugged me tightly. "You're the best!"

I rolled my eyes. "Hey, if _you_ wanna live in that delusion..."

"Kame-itoko-chan! Kame-itoko-chan!"

I turned to see who was calling my name, as did Gaara. I barely had any time to think before a little person about Gaara's size attack-hugged me, almost knocking me over.

"Hey!" Gaara tried to pull the girl off me. "No way! She's _my_ Kame-chan!"

"She's _my_ big cousin!" She started wrestling with him.

"_My_ Kame-chan!"

"_My_ cousin!"

"ENOUGH!" I yelled at both of them. I pulled them apart, holding them each by their collars. "Gaara. First of all, I am not yours. I belong to myself. Second of all..." I turned to the girl. "Who the hell _are_ you?"

She had brownish-blonde hair and verdant green eyes. "Knock it off, Kame-itoko-chan! You _know_ who I am! What, just 'cause Mommy made me cut my hair you don't rec'anize me?"

I blinked and looked a little bit closer. Now that she mentioned it, she looked almost _exactly_ like Hana's daughter, my 8-year-old cousin Nanten, but with shorter hair. "... Nanten?"

"Darn straight! Lemme go!"

I let go of the both of them. "Nanten-chan, what are you doing in Suna? The last thing I knew you were with Haru-oji-san in Konoha."

"Daddy said I had to move back here with Mommy. You didn't see me all morning 'cause Mommy made me go get a haircut!" She crossed her arms, grumbling. "I _still_ don't like the stupid bangs, and it was more fun when I could whip my hair at people and use it as a weapon!"

Gaara pulled me down to his level, and whispered in my ear, "Tell her I think her hair looks nice short."

I glanced at him, raising an eyebrow. "You've never seen her with long hair."

"Just tell her! Please?"

I sighed. "Okay." I stood up, taking Gaara by the shoulders. "Say, Nanten-chan, Gaara here has something he'd like to tell you!" And I promptly gave Gaara a little shove, right into no-man's-land.

"K-Kame-chan!" He inched right back toward me. I could tell he was nervous about it; after all, what if she didn't like him, same as basically the rest of the village. "U-Um... so your name's Nanten."

"Yeah. Nanten Chi. My mommy doesn't have my daddy's last name, so I don't either."

"Oh. W-Well, you were complaining about your hair..."

"Yeah! It's these bangs, I can't see anything and I miss hitting people with my hair 'cause it used to be real long."

"Well, um... I don't think it looks that bad. It's pretty."

Nanten looked down. "U-Um, thanks. So hey, what'd you say your name was?"

"I'm Gaara." He looked down, his shoulder shooting up to his ears, almost as if he expected her to instantly reject him.

"Gaara! I like that name."

He looked back up at her, and a big smile came to his face. "Th-Thanks! I... I like yours too."

* * *

For two weeks, we barely saw hide or tail of Nanten again. Why, you might be asking? Well... Gaara insisted on "training" me for the talent contest. He said he thought I was the best already, but a little practice never hurt. After all, he'd said, Yashamaru and Takamine Sensei were both competing too. He didn't think they were singing (although Yashamaru might be since according to Gaara his voice was really great), but that made it even harder for the judge people.

As soon as I picked him up from school, we went straight home and he would sit down with his little piano, and make me sing the most _ridiculous_ songs. Don't get me wrong, he'd sing with me (and tell me what I was doing wrong, and tell me to sit up straighter, and tell me not to look so effing bored, and...), but the songs he knew were all little kid songs he'd learned in preschool and from Takamine Sensei. You guys ever heard of that one addictive "Cuppycake" song? Yeah. He made me sing that.

... What? Sure, it was cute when he sang it. But when _I_ sang that song, it was just awkward and beyond.

He also made me sing the Barney theme song. That one wasn't _as_ bad, since he hugged me while we were singing that "a hug from me to you" part or whatever, but still. If anybody in Suna had seen that, I would be dead... of embarrassment.

After we did a few of them, he made me go to the basement and practice the song for the show. His reason why I couldn't be in the same room was that he wanted to be able to be impressed by how far I'd come with the song since that first time I'd sang it for him. He told me he wanted to be able to stand up first, clap the most, and yell "Yay, Kame-chan!" the loudest.

... And don't even _ask_ me how we got all his homework done during this time.

At _last_, the day of the competition arrived. Gaara made me dress in the prettiest outfit I'd brought with me, which was a long-sleeved white dress that went a few inches past my knees, with a wide belt of brown around my waist and a bow in the back; also, tan Roman-style sandals. Keep in mind, this outfit was _not_ my idea. Gaara went through my suitcase and picked it out. And _boy_, was I hot in it. But he liked how it looked, so I just breathed through it... and made him take a water bottle for me. I'd already drank the whole thing once before we even got there, and he filled it up at the nearest fountain.

The thing was outdoors, which made it worse for the heat factor. Everyone was buzzing, getting ready for the event and talking with friends and relatives. I told Gaara to pick seats for us, and we sat down until it was time for the competition to begin.

"Kame-itoko-chan! Gaara-kun!" Nanten raced over, dressed in a pink two-piece outfit of a sequined tank top and shorts. She was holding a few branches of cherry blossoms, and paraded them in front of us. "Hey, aren't these pretty?"

"Yeah." Gaara leaned forward, taking a deep breath. "I like 'em 'cause they're one of the _only_ flowers I'm not allergic to."

"What's with the get-up and the blossoms?" I asked, pushing my hair out of my face. I already felt the sweat beading down my face, and I hoped to God this was over quickly.

Nanten waved them in my face. "Umm... Mommy didn't tell you? I'm singing!"

"Oh. No, Hana didn't tell me. We're not really talking that much anymore."

"Okay. Well, guess what I'm singing?"

"Okay, what?"

"It's a surprise, that's what!" She giggled and tapped Gaara on the head with her branches. "Are you gonna watch me, Gaara-kun?"

"Of course! No way I wouldn't."

"Awesome. Well, I gotta go to Mommy so she can put my headband on. I'll see you guys later!" She ran off, toward wherever Hana was, I assumed.

Gaara sighed, in what souned like me to a lovesick manner. I had to grin at that. "Wow! So there's somebody else that doesn't hate me, Kame-chan."

"Yeah, I guess." I liked to see this, especially with someone who was my own family and kind of made me believe my family wasn't made up of _only_ assholes, but there was that little tug of jealousy. What if Gaara started liking Nanten more than he liked me?

"Kame! Kame, what are you doing here?"

I turned around to see Yashamaru and... Takamine Sensei? They were dressed in matching outfits, with Takamine in a strapless, knee-length beige dress with red lining, and Yashamaru in a tan shirt and pants with red symbols throughout. I blinked a few times, because... Yashamaru had his arm around Takamine's waist and she was holding his other hand.

I just stared at them blankly. "Um." I shook my head to make sure I was really seeing what I thought I was seeing. "Yasha, you... are dating... Gaara's teacher?"

I could see Yashamaru blush, and he rolled his eyes. "Yes."

I whistled. "Well, damn. Musta been _some_ conference."

Takamine looked down. "Yes, and the wine we had afterwards wasn't bad either."

"Oh. I see, so when Gaara said you two were competing, he meant you were competing..."

"Together," Yashamaru finished. "We're dancing. I didn't know you were entering, Kame."

"Gaara has only been training me for the past two weeks for it. Well... good luck, Yashamaru... Takamine-san."

Yashamaru nodded. "... You as well. We are going to go make sure our CD is set on the right track. We will see you after the show." He walked off with Takamine, over to the sound guy person dude.

"Our CD's right, Kame-chan, did you make sure?"

"Yep." I glanced down. "Should be one hell of a show."

* * *

**Ok soo itoko means cousin. Nanten is the Japanese name for the nandina flower. In Japanese culture, it's used to prevent nightmares from returning. Pretty cool huh?**

**Well... all I have to say is LOVE REVIEWS! FTW. Hope you liked ^^**


	13. Chapter 13

**OM-FLIPPIN'-G. Sorry it took so long guys! I went on an FMA kick and eh... hehe... Envy wouldn't let me write for anyone else. When he found out I was writing Bleach even, he just LOST it. So yeah.**

**WOO HOOO! The song Nanten sings is of course "Sakura Kiss" from _Ouran High School Host Club_, and it's the English version, hope you guys don't mind. The song Yasha and Takamine dance to is "Trust You" by Yuna Ito. And the song Kame sings is "Alone Again", also by Yuna Ito. I actually recommend listening to either of them while reading this chap. My favorite is "Trust You" by "Alone Again" was the first one I ever heard of Yuna's sooo... that's why Kame sings it. XD**

**Enjoy after such a long wait, guys!**

* * *

As it turned out, I wasn't up to bat first. So I had to sit in the audience with Gaara until my turn came. I didn't really mind, it was just the heat that was getting to me.

Some creepy dude got up on stage... with a puppet. He sat down on the stage, and gave us all in the audience a leery grin. "Who's ready for some _real_ entertainment?" He gestured to his ventriloquist's dummy, the smirk not letting up. "Akira-kun here is going to perform the Sunagakure anthem for you all!"

As "Akira" began to sing, screechily and quite off-key, I groaned, sinking down in my seat. This guy had obviously not read that little note to the puppet masters on that flyer...

I heard Gaara "hmmph" next to me. "He's not that good," he whispered to me, laying his head on my leg and watching from an angle. "I bet my brother could do better. And _his_ dolls are even uglier."

I looked down, blinking as I placed my hand on his head. "You have a brother?"

"Yeah. His name's Kankuro and he's eight. I have a big sister too. Her name's Temari and she's nine. They're both in the Academy already."

"How come I never met them? They hidin' from me?"

He shrugged. "They live with Daddy, and I live with Yashamaru."

"Well..." This was totally boggling my mind. That was _so_ not the picture of a normal family. If one parent was dead, you lived with the other. You didn't live with your uncle while your brother and sister lived with your parent. Simple as that. "Okay, Gaara, so... if Kazekage-sama pays _me_ to take care of _you_, and he's the one who had to hire me in the first place... why don't you live at _his_ house?"

"Yashamaru's better at keepin' Shukaku from getting out. And if I do hurt somebody, he's the only one who knows I didn't mean it. He protects me. Plus I don't wanna hurt Kanky and Tema-nee-chan." He hugged his teddy bear.

I stroked his hair very lightly. "Well, _I_ know you don't mean it. And I'll protect you too."

"From... From everybody?"

"Duh. Friends protect each other."

He snuggled into me, burying his face into the folds of my dress over my stomach. "Thanks, Kame-chan.'

"Hey, no problem. That's what I'm here for, dork."

Up on the stage, Creepy Puppet Dude and Akira were being pushed off the stage. "Thank you for that... err... stunning rendition of our anthem!" called the announcer person as he shoved Creepy Puppet Dude behind the curtains of stage left. "Folks, how about a hand for Hiro and Akira here, huh?"

There was scattered applause - none of it from me or Gaara, thank God.

"Well, we're starting the show off great," the emcee guy chuckled nervously, in my opinion lying through his teeth. "Now it's time for our second act, and it's a real treat! Ladies and gentleman, please put your hands together for Miss Nanten Chi, performing her version of 'Sakura Kiss'!"

Gaara immediately sat up from my lap. "Kame-chan, check it out! It's Nanten-chan!"

"Oh hell yes!" I clapped wildly, whistling. "Go Nanten-chan!"

Gaara mirrored my movements, if to a bit of a lesser degree. "Yay, Nanten-chan!"

Nanten pranced onto the stage with her glittery costume and flowers. She waved to somebody in the audience who I assumed to be Hana, and then at Gaara and I. She pointed her branch at the sound nerd, and music played. She took the microphone and began her performance.

"_Kiss kiss, fall in love!_

_I see you come_

_I watch you go_

_You never seem to leave me though_

_So is this love_

_Or hate? We'll see_

_You're makin' me crazy!_

_Inside my dreams_

_You're all I see_

_Well, all I see is you with me_

_Lady, maybe_

_Or host, I find_

_I really don't mind_

_If I had to choose a rose_

_In this garden of romance_

_Maybe we could take this chance..._

_Maybe you're my love_!"

At that point, she tossed several of her sakura branches into the audience. Lo and behold, Gaara caught one. And he grinned at me, as he clutched it, obviously very proud of himself. He waved up at Nanten as she kept singing.

"_And I would like to find_

_A hand like yours to take mine_

_And with one kiss_

_We could stop time and_

_I'd fall in love with you!_

_Tomorrow's far away_

_Let's place our hope in today_

_Just you and me_

_In a beautiful spring_

_And we'll always fall in love_

_Again_!"

She did a little dance before the final part, then sang out, "_Maybe you're my love_!"

And with that, she blew a kiss into the audience - aimed straight at Gaara. Hoo brother...

I looked down and noticed, with a barely concealed snicker, that he had his hand on his cheek and was blushing like nobody's business. I shook my head as I grinned, patting his back. "Well now, I didn't think we'd have to go through this till you were older," I muttered, half to him and half to myself.

Nanten smacked the announcer guy a high-five before giving him the mic back and bouncing off stage. "Well, now, wasn't that something?" the guy commented, sort of clapping. "What a perfect opening for our next entry! I present to you, Miss Takamine Ayasunako and Sunagakure no Yashamaru, performing their dazzling dance routine to Yuna Ito's 'Trust You'! Give them a big hand!"

While Gaara clapped rather zealously for them, I stiffly clapped just a few times, sore at the fact that they had picked the same artist as I had. At least it wasn't the same song, or otherwise I _really_ would have been pissed.

The beginning 30-second intro began to play as Yashamaru and Takamine entered the stage from opposite sides. I guess it was supposed to have some sort of a romantic effect, as they kind of just swirled around each other during the opening of it. During the five-second countdown before the singing began, they assumed their positions, clasping hands and meeting chest-to-chest.

"_Hana wa kaze ni yureodoru you ni_

_Ame wa daichi wo uruosu you ni_

_Kono sekai wa yorisoiai ikiteru no ni_..."

Yashamaru's hand let go of Takamine's hand, and slid down her waist so that he could dip her down. Actually, it was such a low dip that her hair just about touched the floor of the stage.

"_Naze hito wa kizutsukeau no?_

_Naze wakare wa otozureru no?_"

Their position straightened again and they began to do more a fast-paced waltz type thing.

"_Kimi ga tooku ni itte mo mada_

_Istumo kono kokoro no man'naka_

_Ano yasashii egao de umetsukusareta mam_

_Dakishimeta kimi no kakera ni_

_Itami kanjite mo mada_..."

They embraced each other tightly, their mouths meeting in a kiss as Yashamaru picked her up bridal-style and quickly twirled her around for the bridge.

"_Tsunagaru kara_

_Shinjiteru yo_

_Mata aeru to_

_I'm waiting for your love_..."

During the chorus they did a more ballroom-style dance... not exactly like the waltz-type they'd done before, but a little similar.

"_I love you, I trust you_

_Kimi no kodoku wo wakete hoshii_

_I love you, I trust you_

_Hikari demo, yami demo_

_Futari dakara shinjiaeru no_..."

They stopped in the middle of the floor, clutching each other's hand, and the other hand occupying a spot on their partner's face as they both mouthed the last word of it.

"_Hanasanaide_..."

They returned to the style reminiscent of the first verse, though they were moving a bit faster.

"_Sekai no hate wo dare ga mita no?_

_Tabi no owari wo dare ga tsugeru no?_

_Ima wa kotae ga mienakute nagai yoru demo_..."

Yashamaru did a variant of the first dip - picked up Takamine bridal-style like before, and dipped her even lower toward the ground.

"_Shinjita michi wo susunde hoshii_

_Sono saki ni hikari ga matsu kara_..."

More fast-paced waltzing, and it was even a little faster this time.

"_Kimi ga oshietekureta uta wa_

_Ima mo kono kokoro no man'naka_

_Ano yasashii koe to tomo ni hibiiteru_

_Afureru kimochi no shizuku ga_

_Atatakaku hootsutau_..."

And another kissing twirl. I actually rolled my eyes this time, although they did look kind of... cute... together. Two idiots didn't make a genius, though, so... yeah. You can see my dilemma.

"_Tsuyokunarune_

_Shinjiteru yo_

_Tsunagatteru to_

_I'm always by your side_..."

Back to the dancing they'd done for the first chorus.

"_I love you, I trust you_

_Kimi no tame ni nagasu namida ga_

_I love you, I trust you_

_Ai wo oshietekureta_

_Donna ni kimi ga michi ni mayotte mo_..."

And there came the hand-holding and cheek-touching.

"_Soba ni iru yo_..."

Ooh, something different. They flung out, still holding each other's hand, throwing their free hand out in a reaching gesture. After that they twirled and embraced, then repeated until this part was over.

"_Waiting for your love_

_Always by your side_

_You're the one that I love_

_You're the one that I trust_

_You're the only one_..."

They kissed and held their arms out to their sides, hands still clasped together.

"_You're the only one_..."

They were slow now, as was the tempo of what seemed to be the final moments of this edit.

"_I love you, I trust you_

_Kimi no kodoku wo wakete hoshii_

_I love you, I trust you_

_Hikari demo, yami demo_

_Futari dakara shinjiaeru no_..."

One last dip, and of course a kiss...

"_Hanasanaide_..."

HOLY HELL, MY EARDRUMS.

I scowled and tossed my hair as the entire place burst into applause. "Clap a bit louder," I snorted, crossing my arms over my chest. "I don't think they can hear you in Kirigakure yet."

"Wasn't that super amazing?" Gaara cried, latching onto my legs and hugging just about as tightly as he could. "I told you they were good!"

"Yep, super amazing." I gently pried him off and gave a cue to the sound guy, who was sitting there looking bored with the whole thing. He nodded and changed the CD.

"Wonderful! Just astounding!" The emcee was busy gushing over how romantic and fantastic the choreography had been. "Have you ever seen two people more in love, folks? And I'll tell ya, their footwork's pretty fancy too!"

Yashamaru and Takamine were already on the way back to their seats, and I snickered at the fact that _both_ of their faces were completely red. That was what they got for showing off.

"Next up," the announcer called, apparently able to move on from that _totally spectacular performance_, "Kame Chi, singing her rendition of - we-ell, another Yuna Ito song! Should be interesting. Here she is with 'Alone Again'. Enjoy."

He handed the mic off to me, practically gagging as I got onstage, and I childishly stuck my tongue out at him before walking up to the mic stand and putting the microphone back in it. I gave a snap of my fingers to the sound guy, and as the intro played, I tried to pull my uncomfortably hot collar down a little. To no avail, might I add. Stupid temperatures and living in the middle of nowhere...

I tapped my foot, trying to hear my cue, and realized I had missed about a beat. I quickly began to sing, even though I'd come in late. I compensated for it though, singing faster till I'd caught up.

"_Anata dake ima miteru_

_Mou aenaku naru kara_

_Konomama zutto mou kitto_

_Furikaeru koto mo nai_

_Wasureru koto wa nai yo_

_Itsumo soba ni ita no ni_

_Naki dashisou na sora no shita_

_Tada tachisukun de iru_..."

I nodded, closing my eyes and concentrating on nothing but the music and putting emotion into my performance.

"_Time is not on my side_..."

Thankfully, I didn't miss my cue this time.

"_Itsumo anata no soba de_

_Naitari warattari wo_

_Kurikaesu hibi mou nidoto_

_Modoru koto nante nai_

_Kanashimi ni sayonara wo_

_Sugu ni ieru no nara_

_Hito wa dare mo ga tsuyoi mono_

_I wanna be with you_..."

I punctuated more, as the chorus of the music came to me. I noticed my voice sounded a little shaky, and I hoped that singing out more would made the tremble disappear.

"_Itsumade mo te wo tsunai de_

_Dokomade mo ikitakatta_

_Kajikanda yubisaki_

_Nukumori wo sagashita_

_Kokoro wa zutto? No way, no way_

_If I go, will you come too? I don't wanna be  
Oh, alone again_..."

I allowed myself a small peek into the audience, and saw that Gaara was practically bouncing with excitement, and I was kinda worried that smile was going to just spontaneously split his face in two.

"_Itsuka futari de miteta_

_Ekimae no vision niwa_

_Ima mo anata no suki na uta_

_Repeat shiterunda_

_Watashi mo suki nan dayo_

_Sou itte ita nowa ne_

_Anata tame de ima wa mou_

_Kirai ni nari sou nan da_

_I will never leave you..._

_Anata kara no mail wo_

_Zenbu keshite mita kedo_

_Yasashii koe wa kioku kara_

_Kie wa shinain darou_

_Moshimo negai ga hitotsu kanau_

_No nara nante ne_

_Arifureta koto omotte wa_

_I wanna be with you..._

_Itsumade mo te wo tsunai de_

_Dokomade mo ikitakatta_

_Kajikanda yubisaki_

_Nukumori wo sagashita_

_Kokoro wa zutto? No way, no way_

_If I go, will you come too? I don't wanna be  
Oh, alone again_..."

Because the submissions were only allowed to be four minutes, I'd had to edit the song a bit. So instead of doing the different beginning of the chorus and then the regular chorus, I was just going to do the one with the different beginning, and since it ended the same it really wasn't an issue. Just under the limit, but hey, whatever works. And here it came!

"_Anata no sono egao mo_

_Ookina te no hira mo_

_Omoide ni nanka_

_Shitaku wa nakatta_

_Kokoro wa zutto? No way, no way_

_If I go, will you come too? I don't wanna be_

_Oh, alone again_

_Again_..."

The music faded out, and I bowed, desperate for a rush of cool air, even if it was fake. I took deep breaths and tried to calm myself down. I was done! It was all over. There was nothing left to be nervous about.

I could hear slight clapping, but when I looked up Gaara was out of his seat, clapping like a little frickin' maniac. His entire face was a light pink, and his eyes were so bright I wondered if perhaps the sky might notice those stars were missing tonight. He still had that same, ear-to-ear grin on his face, and I can't tell you how good it made me feel that he was actually... proud of me.

I heard the emcee guy talking as he came up and took the microphone, but I didn't hear him. I wasn't focusing on anything... I was just staring into space. I wondered why I suddenly felt like my head was about to float away, and I wondered why I hadn't cooled down yet. I was still sweating like mad, so why wasn't that cooling me off? My last coherent thought was that as soon as we got home I'd have to ask Gaara to hose me down with the sprayer in the sink.

I felt my eyes close, not even of my own will. I could feel myself falling forward, but I couldn't do anything. I couldn't even reach out my hands. I was so hot... and so confused...

The last thing I heard before my world went totally black was Gaara screaming my name. "Somebody help her! _Kame-chan_!"

**WOWEE SORRY ABOUT THAT CLIFFIE GUYS.**

**OK, well... translation for "Trust You":**

**Flowers sway in the wind as if dancing**  
**So that the rain moistens the earth**  
**Even though this world is alive, coming closer together**  
**Why do people hurt each other?**  
**Why do partings come about?**

**Even if you go far away, still**  
**You're always right in the middle of my heart**  
**While they remain buried away by that kind smile**  
**Even if I feel pain**  
**In fragments of you that I held, because we'll still connect**  
**I trust that we can meet again**  
**I'm waiting for your love**

**I love you, I trust you**  
**I want you to share your loneliness with me**  
**I love you, I trust you**  
**Even in light, even in darkness, because we're together**  
**We're able to trust each other**  
**Please don't leave anymore**

**Who saw the edge of the world?**  
**Who announces the end of the journey?**  
**Even if it's a long night and you can't see the answer now**  
**I want you to advance on the road that you trusted**  
**Because light is waiting ahead of there**

**The song that you taught me**  
**Is right in the middle of my heart even now**  
**The overflowing drops of feelings**  
**That are resonating together with that kind voice**  
**Warmly trail down my cheeks**  
**I'll become strong; I trust that we're connected**  
**I'm always by your side**

**I love you, I trust you**  
**These tears keep flowing because of you**  
**I love you, I trust you**  
**You taught me what love was**  
**No matter how you're lost on the road**  
**I'm by your side**

**Waiting for your love**  
**Always by your side**  
**Youre the one that I love**  
**Youre the one that I trust**  
**Youre the only one**

**I love you, I trust you**  
**I want you to share your loneliness with me**  
**I love you, I trust you**  
**Even in light, even in darkness, because we're together**  
**We're able to trust each other**  
**Please don't leave anymore**

**And for "Alone Again":**

**I only look at you now because I can't meet you anymore**  
** I will surely not look back**  
** I can't forget, I was always by your side**  
** Under the empty sky I seem to burst into tears, but I'm standing petrified**  
** Time is not on my side**

** I always cried and laughed by your side**  
** Days repeat themselves and again, there's nothing**  
** I seem to be able to say goodbye to my sadness if I can say it immediately**  
** The thing which everybody's strong in**  
** I wanna be with you****  
**

**Hands joined forever,**  
** I wanted to go somewhere.**  
** I searched for the finger-tip warmth which has become numb.**  
**Is my heart more? No way, no way.**  
** If I go, will you come too? I don't wanna be**  
** Oh, alone again**

** Someday the two of us looked at the image/vision in front of the station**  
** Even now your favorite song is repeating**  
** "I like it too", I said**  
** I already seem to dislike you if it's for your sake**  
** ...I will never leave you**

** Although I deleted all the mails from you**  
** The gentle voice will not disappear from my memory**  
** "If one wish comes true"**  
** I yearn for the same thing**  
** I wanna be with you**

** Hands joined forever**  
** I wanted to go somewhere**  
** I searched for the finger-tip warmth which has become numb**  
**Is my heart more? No way, no way.**  
** If I go, will you come too? I don't wanna be**  
** Oh, alone again**

** As for your smile, as for your hand**  
** I didn't want to make it turn into a memory**  
** My heart becomes more no way, no way**  
** If I go, will you come too? I don't wanna be**  
** Oh, alone again**

**Yeah, I changed the very last parts in the chorus on "Alone Again" but hey.**

**None of the songs belong to me, the only things that do are Kame and Takamine.**

**PLEASE REVIEW GUYS. I'll feel very underappreciated if I don't get reviews... *goes to the Emo Corner***

**BYE LOVE YOU ALL! ^^  
**


	14. Chapter 14

**HOLY HELLHOLE.**

**HOW LONG HAS IT BEEN? OVER A YEAR? AM I EVEN IN CIVILIZATION ANYMORE? ARE YOU ALL A MIRAGE?**

**... Yeah. I, uh, I really have no excuse. I think it was mainly the fact that I went on a Transformers bender that lasted waaaaaaay longer than I thought it would. Plus, Naruto and I had a falling out with each other.**

**Shukaku: But now she's back, and HERE SHE COMES, BABY!**

**Me: ... I thought we agreed you'd stay out of my A/Ns, you overgrown raccoon dog.**

**AWRIGHT. So hopefully next chapter, I'll begin some of the *gasp* PLOT FROM THE ACTUAL SHOW. I gotta scour my hard drive to see if those clips of the episode I need dialogue from are still here... I've changed laptops so many times and I may need to go on a search with my old one if I don't have it. XD**

**Now, I wouldn't blame you people if I got no reviews at all... but I am hoping you'll take mercy and that you haven't forgotten me and my humble little story.**

**I hope you like this long overdue chapter!**

* * *

When I finally woke up, I was lying in a bed. My vision was blurry at best, but after a few seconds, as I blinked, it got better. I could see, and I could now feel as well. And what did I feel? A tiny, sweaty hand holding my own rather tightly.

I groaned and looked over to see Gaara holding my hand. He sat in a chair that was scooted as close to the bed as possible, and his cheek rested on my arm. He looked really tired, if I had to name the look on his face. Looked like he was about to fall asleep.

"Hey Gaara," I chuckled, "is it just me, or is this total déja-vû of our first night together?"

His head jerked up instantly, and he threw his arms around my neck, ecstatic to the point of practically choking me. "_Kame-chan!_" You wouldn't believe me if I told you just how relieved this kid sounded.

I fake-gagged and hugged him back. "Woo, boy! I think that's the most sleep I've gotten in, what - four months now?"

I could feel him nuzzling his face into that area between my neck and my shoulder. It literally felt like he never wanted to let me go. "I-I was so scared, Kame-chan! I thought you weren't gonna wake up!"

"Hey, no worries, babe." I rubbed his back gently, resting my lips against his hair. "I'm fine." I carefully pried Gaara's body away from mine, though I continued to stroke his hair. "I'm not in the hospital. So obviously whatever happened wasn't too serious."

"We couldn't take you anyway," Yashamaru spoke up from the corner where he was standing with Takamine - holding hands, of course. "They won't let Gaara in, remember? And he wanted to stay with you."

I pouted. "Oh yeah. Mark up some blonde points for me, then." I twirled a chunk of Gaara's hair around my finger. "What happened anyway? All I can remember is passing out on stage while I was trying..." Suddenly struck by a sharp pain, I grabbed my head. "Owww, sonuva bitch! What happened?"

"You got overheated," Yashamaru answered. "And yes, Kame, you did pass out. You also hit your head when you fell off the stage. Takamine-chan changed you out of that dress and into some of my clothes."

"Aww, I can't believe this," I muttered, rubbing Gaara's back lightly. "I _would_ be the only one to pass out on stage. _Che,_ that sucks." I flipped my hair back. "Who won, anyway? Did you guys get anything?"

Takamine blushed. "First place."

Yashamaru's arm tightened around her waist. "You got fourth. Nanten-kun got second."

"Fourth. Figures, since I'm Gaara's babysitter." I rolled my eyes. "Well, at least Nanten got recognized. Oh, and you guys too." I sighed and patted Gaara's head. "Takamine Sensei, will you please walk Nanten home? My aunt's going to be freaking out, especially if she finds out where Nanten's been."

Takamine nodded, carefully drawing away from her boyfriend and reaching down to take Nanten by the hand. "C'mon, Nanten-chan - back to your mommy, okay?"

"'Kay!" Before Nanten left she leaned over and pressed her lips lightly against my charge's cheek, grinning and blushing. "Bye-bye, Gaara-kun! I'll see you later!"

As Nanten and Takamine walked out, I looked over at Gaara. Just in time to see his face light up, completely pink, even all the way out to his ears. He quickly scuttled over close to me, and carefully whispered in my ear, "K-Kame-chan? N-Nanten-chan... is really nice..."

I laughed, running my fingers through his hair. Great, my little bubbling cupcake of cute and awkward had a crush. How was I gonna handle this...? Well... maybe handling it with maturity would work. "I know she is, hon. She really likes you."

His face flushed even more, if it was possible, and he rubbed his arm, almost self-consciously. "I... I like her too..."

After a few more seconds of standing there, the blush in his face faded away. He then turned to me and started tackle-hugging me again. He nearly hopped up onto the bed, burying his face in my neck and squeezing as hard as he could. "I'm so glad you're okay, Kame-chan..." I felt him close his eyes against my skin. "I... I was really worried about you."

I wrapped my arms around him and smiled, rubbing his back. "Aww, Gaara. Don't... Don't get all mushy on me, will you?" Feeling a few tears pricking at my eyes, I kissed the side of his head. "You're gonna make me cry."

He giggled against me, though I could tell he'd started to cry a little bit. "I-I'm sorry, Kame-chan..." Something wet suddenly rushed down my neck where he was, but I wasn't sure if it was tears from his crying or slobber from him trying to kiss me like I'd kissed him. "It's just... you're my best friend and..." He sniffed, hugging me tighter. "I-I don't know what I'd do if you weren't here."

I sighed, and when I blinked a few tears slid down my face from the action. "Well, hon..." I barely managed to swallow past the lump that had formed in my throat. "Goes for two of us..."

* * *

"I don't get you, Yasha."

Somehow, Yashamaru and I had wound up alone in the house together. He'd just dropped Gaara off at school and had walked in the door. I doubt he appreciated being bombarded with my... whatever I was doing... as soon as I walked in. But he had to sleep so he could get ready for his next cycle of work, and I didn't have long to talk to him. I've always been the kind of person who, if she has something important to discuss with someone, I'd rather not beat around the bush.

He closed the door, tiredly and without a slam as usual. He hardly even gave me so much as a glance as he passed the couch where I was lying. "I don't feel like talking about this right now, Kame. All I want to do is have something to eat and get some rest. You should sleep too, you've got to pick up Gaara in-"

I may not be the skinniest person around, but damn if I don't move fast when I'm determined. I was up from the couch with my hand around Yashamaru's arm in less than five seconds. For the briefest of moments I wondered whether or not I'd make a good ninja with reflexes like that, but I abandoned that thought. _Focus,_ I told myself. _No time to get distracted._ "I don't care what you feel like, Yasha. I never get to talk to you about anything important, and you're not going to refuse me. Now, I'm going to say this one time, slowly, so listen up. We. Need. To. _Talk._"

His pale eyes narrowed at me for a minute, then moved down to where I was grasping his arm. A bit too tightly, probably. "Fine. But can you let go of my arm first?"

"No." For whatever reason, my cold voice was back. I hadn't noticed myself using this tone since the incident at Hana's. "You might try to run."

He sighed, sound frustrated beyond anything. "So what do you want? What don't you get about me?"

Shaking my head, I pulled him closer, just so I didn't have to grip him hard enough to bruise him and strain my fingers. "I just don't understand you, Yasha. For starters, you probably look more like a woman than your girlfriend."

In return, he offered me a sneer. "_Fiancé._"

"Whatever, you're girlier than her. Just getting that out of the way," I clarified. "Look. I _really_ don't appreciate my charge being lied to."

He raised an eyebrow. "I've never told any lies to Gaara. I would never-"

"So you haven't lied with words! Big deal, Yasha!" I finally let go of his arm, pushing it back toward its owner so hard I'm surprised I didn't give him arm-whiplash. "Words are only _one_ way you can lie to people, you know. You _should_ know." I was this close to just kneeing him in the balls and calling it a public service, so I didn't have to deal with him anymore and so he couldn't reproduce. He wouldn't stop; he was still lying through his fucking teeth. Well, I'd show him that lying to _me_ was the worst mistake he'd ever make in his life. "You lie to Gaara every day with your actions."

He rubbed at his wrist where I'd been holding him, and looked genuinely confused. I would give him a little credit - he was a liar, sure. But he was a very good liar. "Kame, I assure you, I'd never lie to him. And whatever you think I'm doing, I'm certain it's just your imagination because you haven't been getting enough sleep. When you're sleep deprived it can cause a host of-"

"_Shut up!_" I turned around, curving my hands near my head. "I hate your voice! You're such a whiney little _bitch!_ You lie and you lie and you think you can get away with it! You think because you're a medic you can play the 'I'm smarter than you' card! But guess what? _You can't!_ I've caught on to you, Yashamaru." I whirled back around to face him, glaring daggers. This was the first time I'd ever used his full name. "I told Gaara I would protect him from everyone who hated him. And if that means you too, I won't hesitate."

He took a step toward me, reaching his hand out. "Kame, please-"

"No!" I stumbled back, falling onto the couch. "You disgust me so much. You go out there and - and talk to Gaara like you love him, and you pretend to like me. And underneath all that, you despise us both. I don't know what he's ever done to you, but he's the sweetest kid in the world. Coming from someone like me who usually thinks kids are little brats, I swear that should make some kind of headline. And let me tell you something else, you don't deserve someone like Gaara in your life because seriously-"

"I hate him."

The room suddenly felt a lot colder. All I could do was stare up at Yashamaru, open-mouthed and wide-eyed. I almost couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe he'd actually _admitted_ his true feelings. I couldn't even think of anything to say to that. What... What was I _supposed_ to say? Was there a legitimate follow-up to that? He'd just told me _to my face_ that he hated Gaara. That he hated that kind little boy who wanted friends, who would do anything just to prove his worth to everyone in this village, and most importantly to his uncle.

He'd probably hated Gaara for _years._ He'd kept it all bottled up, putting on this little show. All while _I_ had struggled to earn Gaara's trust at first. I'd come in and thanks to Gaara, I discovered what love was. In a very short time, I had learned to love Gaara because he was the sweetest, cutest, most affectionate person I'd ever known. And even _Yashamaru_ couldn't see how amazing and good the kid was?

Tears pooled in my eyes, and I slowly shook my head at him. "You..." I was completely horrified that he would actually own up to it. Wasn't that what I had wanted? For him to admit that he hated Gaara? But it didn't make me feel any better. It made me feel so much worse. There was someone besides me who Gaara thought cared about him, who I thought was just short and snappish because of all his work but was a nice guy deep down...

And everything we thought about him was utterly _wrong._

I pushed myself off the couch, tears streaming down my face by this point. This was ridiculous. Could nobody in this fucking village but _me_ see that Gaara wasn't bad? He wasn't the awful creature in all those stories that everyone made him out to be. Hell... he was the only decent person in the entirety of Sunagakure. "Gaara's not the monster. He's - He's not."

I pointed a shaky finger at Yashamaru, barely able to see straight, much less walk it. I was heading for the door. "_You_ are." I opened the door with force I didn't even know I had. The cold tone in my voice was back, mixed with the voice of a scared little kid. "All of you!" Holding back from sobbing, I managed to back myself out of the house. "All of you who can't even see Gaara for what he is! You all see the monster he's forced to carry, _that you all inflicted on him in the first place!_ You can't even take responsibility for giving him that demon! None of you can! You don't want to get to know him because you're _afraid_ that he's not as bad as everyone says!"

Yashamaru didn't move, but he did look down. He couldn't even _look me in the eye._ He knew how stupid he was being, how horrible and judgmental this entire village was. Including him.

"_Good!_" I screamed, hoping everyone could hear me. "You _should_ be ashamed! Hating a poor innocent child who hasn't done _anything_ wrong to you at all, and then manipulating his feelings like you don't even care what it's doing to him! _I hate you, Yashamaru!_"

With that, I ran out of the house, slamming the door as hard as I possibly could. I swear the entire building rattled. I didn't even care what Yashamaru thought, or whether he was angry at me. Why the hell should I care about what he had to say anymore?

_I gotta get out of here._

* * *

**WOWEE. Another cliffhanger much? Not too bad but... XD Yeah well.**

**I won't make this A/N longer than the one at the top, and I don't have much to say except HOLY MUFFINS Gaara is the cutest child to ever walk this universe's Earth. Just sayin'.**

**So then... hope you all liked and haven't abandoned me!**

**Thanks for reading! ^^**


	15. Chapter 15

**Blehh, I lied. Not much plot in this chapter, although there IS some little mention of plot for next chapter. See if you can find it, like in those I Spy books! XD**

**As an apology for the plot that I promised and did not deliver quite yet, there is so much angst and fluff in here that you may choke on it. So if your virtual self chokes on the angst or fluff, my virtual self will give you the Heimlich! Don't worry, she's certified, unlike Kame. XDD**

**... I got two reviews last chapter, but would I be a bad person to ask for more? I still love this story, I promise, and I'ma keep it going for as long as I can! I just need a little support... PWEASE? And if not, Gaara will cry. DON'T MAKE GAARA CRY. Reviewers, I hope you're all still loyal... XD I'm sorry I left for so long! ;-; FORGIVE ME~**

**Anyway, I almost cried writing part of this. I wiped away the tears before they actually went anywhere, so does that count as crying...? XD**

**Hope you all enjoy and remember me! :)**

* * *

I'm not for sure how long I was gone. How long I walked around Suna, stalking down the streets and silently daring everyone who so much as looked at me the wrong way to just _say anything._ I'd managed to stop crying, though the tear streaks left behind stayed there. If I'd bothered to wear eyeliner or mascara ever, it would be running something fierce.

I guess it must have been a few hours. I simply wandered aimlessly around this section of the village, wondering what I was supposed to do now. I wanted nothing more to do with the people of this village, not if there wasn't a single person aside from me who gave a damn about Gaara. But I couldn't just up and leave; the kid needed me too much, especially if I was his only warrior in the fight against hate and years of therapy.

I couldn't even tell Gaara about this. I couldn't tell him the truth! This would break his little heart if he ever found out. That kind of damage... would take a long time to heal, if ever. It wasn't the kind of thing you could just shrug off.

I had to fight just to keep from crying again. Wasn't there anyone besides me and Nanten who could see Gaara for who he really was? He was the only one who didn't judge other people, who didn't look at them with hateful eyes. He always tried to be friendly, and what did it get him? More fear. More hate. More disgust. People ran away from him. And everyone in this whole village, _everyone_ who treated Gaara like dirt... they all made me sick. I felt like I was going to vomit just thinking about it.

Life wasn't fair. It wasn't supposed to be fair. Life was supposed to be challenging, like a fence you had to find a way to climb over. Some people had chain link fences to get over; some people had wooden. Gaara's fence wasn't even a _fence._ His fence was a _brick wall,_ cold and slippery and boxing him in. Life had kicked him down and run away like a coward, leaving him there to get up on his own and climb over that brick wall. But how do you climb over a brick wall if you don't have anything or anyone to help you?

I glanced up at the school, where I'd arrived, and hugged my arms around myself. I... I had no idea how to fix this. Could this kind of thing even be fixed? This wasn't the first time in my life I had felt completely helpless, but it was the first time I'd ever cared enough that I _didn't_ want to feel this way. Gaara didn't deserve his own uncle hating him... and especially for the same reason that everyone else did.

My eyes teared up again, but it passed quickly.

_Fuck the world. Fuck everything._

I walked into the school, and caught sight of a clock. It was almost 1:15, which meant I had about 45 minutes before I could pick Gaara up and hug him. I missed him so much, even more so now because of Yashamaru's words. I... I couldn't wait that long.

I peeked into his classroom, and I saw all the kids pushing their chairs in at the table and practically running over to the carpet. Gaara was already on the carpet, sitting all by himself, but apparently not letting it bother him too much today. I sighed, biting my lip and feeling my eyes tear up again. What a good kid... and nobody else understood that.

Takamine spotted me, and came over to open the door. I could see that she took notice of the redness around my eyes, giving me an almost confused look. "What do _you_ want?"

"Save it." My voice wasn't that cold, harsh tone I'd used with Yashamaru, but it certainly wasn't the kind of voice I ever used when I was with Gaara. "I know how you feel about me, Takamine - I know how you feel about _Gaara._ Your idiot boyfriend happily filled me in." I pushed the door farther, prepared to force my way in if necessary. "I need to see Gaara. _Now._"

She pursed her lips, looking back at him, and let out a breath. "Fine, but hurry up. I don't think he wants to miss much of Music Time."

I nodded curtly, then walked in and knelt down over by a cupboard, gesturing to Gaara and making sure he could see me but that I was out of the way. "Gaara!"

He looked over and seemed really surprised to see me. It quickly changed to a smile though, and he ran over. "Kame-chan!"

I caught him and wrapped my arms tightly around him, burying my face in his hair. I immediately started to cry again, struck with the feeling of never, ever wanting to let him go. Everyone else... everyone else would only hurt him. "Gaara, Gaara..."

He wiggled a little, but didn't seem averse to my tight hug. He reached up and circled his little arms around my neck, pulling us even closer together. "Kame-chan? How come you're here? Are you taking me home early?"

"No, baby... I just..." I rubbed his back, finally settling on just clutching a piece of the fabric in my fingers. My other hand was in his hair, fingers resting among the messy red locks. "I just needed to see you."

I heard him giggle. "Well, here I am, Kame-chan!"

And that was it, I just broke down. I sobbed into his hair, and held him just as close as I could. If I could keep him here with me forever, I wanted to. All I wanted to do was keep him close to me and protect him. "Oh Gaara..." I kissed the top of his head, trying to just get a hold of myself. "Gaara, I... I love you. I love you so much. You know that, right? I love you."

He was quiet for a moment, then tightened his grip on my neck. "Kame-chan... I know." It almost sounded like he was desperately attempting to get me to stop crying. "And I love you too... but..." He fake-choked. "I can't breathe."

I laughed through my tears and let go of him. Seeing him again, his little face looking up at me, I decided that maybe we had a chance against this world. It wasn't an ideal chance, but as long as we were together, we had a ghost of one. I smiled and held his tiny hands in mine, swallowing. "Gaara... just... I just want you to know that no matter what happens, I will _always_ love you. That's a promise, okay? I promise I'll always love you."

He smiled up at me, then tilted his head to the side. "Kame-chan?"

"Yeah, Gaara?"

"What's a promise?"

I took a breath, drawing away one of my hands and brushing two fingers against his cheek. "Oh, I don't know how to explain it... I've never been great at explaining things like that. Just know that when I make a promise, I _never_ break it. When I say I promise that I'll always love you, that means _I will __**always**__ love you._ Nothing is ever gonna stop me loving you."

I took my other hand away, and curled up all my fingers except for my little one. I carefully pried all his fingers on one hand open, and hooked my little finger around his. I held it up for him to see, and grinned. "Look, Gaara. Pinky promise! See? Like a pinky swear, but a promise! Stronger, I think."

"Cool!" He looked so excited. He flexed his little finger, giggling, then brought our hands down and looked up at me. "Kame-chan..." Reaching up, he used his other hand to wipe away a couple of my tears with his first finger. "I promise I'll always love you, too. So... So you don't have to cry or worry or be scared, okay?"

I nodded, squeezing his hand lightly. "Okay, Gaara." I rubbed my eyes, trying to wipe away the rest of my tears. "Alright. Why don't you go back and have fun with the rest of class? I'll come pick you up in a little while... then maybe we can go to the playground. How's that sound?"

"Like fun." He gave me a quick little hug, and started back over to the carpet.

"Hey, Gaara, wait!" I called.

He looked back. "What, Kame-chan?"

I brought my fingers up to my lips in a lame sort of attempt at blowing him a kiss. "From now on, we don't ever walk away from each other without saying 'I love you', okay?"

He nodded, and gave me a smile. "Okay, Kame-chan. I love you."

"I love you, too." I waved as he ran back over to the carpet, and I stood up, sighing.

I was about to head out the door to sit down and wait till I could take him home, but someone caught my wrist. I turned to see Takamine, and I glared. "Just let me go. I'm leaving, okay?"

"No, Kame." She drug me over near the door to the kitchen. "I have to talk to you. Hey Kanari," she called to her aide, who was sitting at the head of the carpet with a guitar. "Start without me, I'll be there in a minute."

Kanari - a slightly awkward girl with big glasses and navy hair tied in a bun - nodded. (And was she new? I didn't remember seeing her before...) "Okay, Takamine-tan!" She began to strum her guitar. "Does everyone remember how we do 'Close Hands, Open Hands', everybody? _Ichi, ni, san!_"

As Takamine pulled me into the kitchen, I could hear all the kids singing with Kanari and clapping their hands to the song. I could even hear Gaara singing along, and he sounded happy. I could just imagine him doing everything exactly as the song said it.

"_Close hands, open hands_

_Clap hands, close hands_

_Open those hands again, clap hands_

_Put those hands up!_

_Close hands, open hands_

_Clap hands, close hands!"_

Takamine closed the door, leaving just a crack open. I could hear Kanari announce, "Ready? Let's try it again, and I want to see _all_ of you doing it! Pay attention. _Ichi, ni, san!_"

The music started again, and Takamine drifted over to the sink. "Kame... this isn't easy for me, you know."

"Why should I even listen to you?" I was trying to keep my voice low for Gaara's sake, if not for all the kids. "Yashamaru just confessed, he's been _lying to me __**and**__ Gaara,_ and I've seen the way you treat Gaara. All of you in this village just... just _disgust_ me. How can you treat a _kid-_"

"Kame, hear me out." She grabbed a couple of plates and began washing them, letting out a deep breath I didn't even realize she was holding. "I could be in a lot of trouble for even telling you any of what I'm about to, so be a little grateful and just listen carefully to what I'm going to say."

Just like that, her attitude from the very beginning since I'd met her had changed. She didn't seem quite as spiteful and mean. I slumped against the counter and crossed my arms, deciding to give her one more chance. "Fine, I'll listen. But you better make sense."

* * *

**Uh oh, another eenie meenie miney little cliffhanger... what's Takamine going to say?! ... Ah wait, I shouldn't ask you guys. *turns to myself* WHAT'S SHE GONNA SAAAAAAY?!**

**Quick Japanese translation, the way that Kanari used "-tan", it's a slang version of "-san", so it's like her saying "Takamine-san", but in a slangy way. Like, uh, "bro." XD**

**Ahem, never mind my simile, lol.**

**Back to my random drabbles! And also writing more of this. I randomly watched some of the flashbacks during Gaara's fight with Naruto and Sasuke, so I got hit with the mood to write some of this.**

**WRITER WOMAN, AWAY~!**

**Hope you liked!**

**Thanks for reading! ^^**


End file.
